Fading Petals
by Kyoshu Koi
Summary: "Ino-chan…you like Sasuke, right?" "Yeah." "Great! Then I'll be cheering you on. You can count on me to get you two together." Sakura's love for Sasuke was kept secret. After all, she didn't want to lose her best friend.
1. Wilted Buds Bloom: Enter! Haruno Sakura

**This chapter has been beta-ed by the lovely Heime the Elephant. Sadly, Heime does not have an FF account, but when she does get one, I'll let you all know. She's an amazing writer, just doesn't have the fan in girl, yet. ~Koi**

* * *

Haruno Sakura was a very shy girl, and she knew it. The parents knew it, the children knew it, hell, even the _ANBU_ watching over a certain blond haired, blue eyed Jinchuriki knew it. Everyone knew Haruno Sakura was shy, _everyone_.

The young child was _so_ shy that she brushed her hair so her bangs fell over her face and all the way down to the tip of her nose, making her look like some kind of ghost from a horror movie. In fact, if her eyes were red, she'd be able to pass as a demon.

Her sleeves were long and dangled over her hands, even though her mom cuffed them for her every morning, and she was constantly looking down and drawing pictures in the dirt with the tips of her shoes, pictures that often resembled cherry blossoms.

All in all, Haruno Sakura was one of the lowest on the pecking order that was established early on by the young females in the playground, only being beaten out by kids with mental/physical disabilities and the blond haired, blue eyed Jinchuriki that was mentioned a few paragraphs ago.

So, that brings us to the start of this story.

* * *

A young, pink haired child sat on the ground near a patch of flowers, brushing away tears to no avail, seeing as they just kept coming back. She sobbed and sobbed, her voice started to get shrill from the constant use.

She was the one girl that had been chosen as the main victim of the girls bullying. At first, she thought she could handle it. It had only started off as comments on her forehead, after all. But then, jokes about how big her forehead was, or how chubby her hands were – even though they were just as chubby as everyone else's at her age – had been thrown in.

And then, it got even worse. They pulled her hair, tripped her, and even threw sand from the sandbox at her eyes.

She knew she should tell her parents, but she didn't want to. They wouldn't be proud of her if she did. She wouldn't be their 'brave little blossom' if she whined and complained. The pinkette hiccuped and tried to brush away her tears.

She knew she had to go home soon, and she wouldn't be able to blame all her sobbing on a scraped knee, especially if it was in perfect condition.

"So you're the Forehead Girl?" a voice spoke up, breaking through Sakura's quite sobs. She let out a terrified squeak and glanced up at the speaker – crouching down over her – through the cracks in her long bangs.

"W-Who are you?" she whispered, wiping another tear away from her puffy eyes.

"Me?" the stranger asked, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear, "I'm Yamanaka Ino. How about you?"

"Sakura," the pinkette whispered.

"Huh?" Ino asked, cupping a hand around her ear and leaning forward a bit more, "I can't hear you."

"Haruno Sakura!" Sakura snapped, sniffling a bit.

Ino smiled and poked Sakura's forehead, "So this is the famous Billboard Brow?" she brushed Sakura's hair back a bit, "Hiding it makes it worse, ya know," Sakura blinked and looked up into Ino's eyes. The Yamanaka girl was almost like an angel.

"Come back tomorrow," Ino said, getting up, "I have a present for you."

* * *

" _Sakura," Ino said, turning to me. We were back at the park again, swinging our too short legs over the side of a bench, "why are you growing your hair out?" she asked, her expression serious._

'Because,' _I thought,_ 'Sasuke-kun likes girls with long hair.' _"Ino's growing hers," I said, "so I'm going to grow mine, too." I forced a smile, "I want to be like you, after all!"_

 _A beat. "Sakura~!" Ino squealed, glomping me around the shoulders, "You're just so cute!"_

" _I-Ino-chan?!"_

* * *

 _Ino mumbled something about Akimichi and how much they eat under her breath before turning to me and raising an eyebrow. (Figure 7) "Sakura, why do you have an extra chocolate in your bag?" she asked._

'I was thinking that maybe I'd have enough courage to give it to Sasuke-kun,' I thought. _Of course, I could never say that out loud. "I'm…," I started, trying to think of an excuse as my eyes scanned the classroom before landing on a certain blond sitting alone in the back row._

"… _I'm going to give it to Naruto-san," I said, "He's always alone, so I thought it might be nice."_

 _Ino shook her head, "You're just too nice, Sakura-chan. You could always give it to your crush or something."_

" _But I don't have one, Ino-chan."_

* * *

" _A-Ano, H-Haruno-san," Hyuga Hinata said, pushing her fingers together nervously as she spoke, "D-Do you l-l-l-l-like –"_

" _Hinata-san, right?" I said, smiling at her, "I only gave the chocolate to Naruto-san in order to cheer him up." The look of pure relief and joy on Hinata's face almost made my heart melt._

" _Sakura-chan!" Ino called, running over. She stopped into front of Hinata and I. "Oh," she said, "Hinata-chan's with you, too." Hinata blushed and looked down, seeming to be on the verge of tears._

 _Ino, on the other hand, just kind of stared at the heiress of one of Konoha's most prestigious clans for a second before a sly smirk made its way up her face. "Don't tell me," she giggled out, elbowing me in the side and waggling her eyebrows at Hinata, "you two got into a fight about Na –"_

" _Ino-chan!" I yelped out, holding a finger to my lips, "Shhhhhhhh!"_ 'I don't want Sasuke-kun to hear and get the wrong idea.' _"You're going to embarrass Hinata-san if you say that out loud," I chastised._

 _Ino blinked, then threw her head back and cackled like a witch._

* * *

" _Sakura-chan! Hinata-chan!" Ino yelled, running over, "I'm going to ask Sasuke-kun out today!"_

" _T-That's great I-Ino-chan," Hinata said, her voice just a bit louder than it was a month ago when I met her. Ever since the chocolate incident, she'd just kind of been absorbed into Ino and I's little group, making the duo a trio._

" _Good luck, Ino!" I said, "I'm rooting for you."_ 'Even though I like him too.'

* * *

" _Ahahahaha…" Ino rubbed the back of her head, "He turned me down." 'Thank kami.'_

" _I-It's okay, Ino-chan," Hinata said, putting a hand on Ino's shoulder, "T-There w-w-will be other chances."_

" _Should I ask him to reconsider?" I asked. '_ What the hell are you saying?!' _I thought,_ 'You're _helping_ her?!'

" _Sakura!" Ino said, hugging me, "You're the best!"_

* * *

" _Go away", Uchiha Sasuke, the school's heartthrob (and both Ino and I's crush), snapped, turning away from me and starting down the hall._

 _I rushed after him and cut him off, "U-um, if you would…"_ 'Say Ino's name. Say Ino's name. Say Ino's name. You're not confessing for yourself, you're confessing for her!'

 _Sasuke let out a frustrated sigh, '"I'm not going to go out with yo–" '_

'Ino deserves him more!' _"Please go out with Yamanaka Ino!" I shouted, bowing to him. Sasuke just blinked._

"… _."_

"… _."_

"… _.."_

"…"

"… _What?" he asked._

" _Please go out with Yamanaka Ino!" I repeated, feeling my face heat up, "The blond!" '_ Just kill me now!' _"The one who just asked you out!"_

"… _Hm."_ 'Ahh," _I thought,_ 'he's walking away.'

* * *

" _Sorry, Ino-chan," I mumbled, "It didn't work."_ 'The first time I talked to Sasuke-kun, my crush…'

" _That's alright, Sakura," Ino said, smiling._ '…And I'm asking him to go out with my best friend.'

" _Should I try again later?" '_ There is seriously something wrong with you!' _I told myself._

" _No," Ino shook her head, "he'll think I'm too persistent. Thank you anyways, though. Oh, we're going over to Hinata's today, right?"_

* * *

Sakura's emerald pools blinked open as soon as the sun hit them. Groaning, the thirteen year old sat up and stretched. She smacked her lips a few times and swung her legs over the bed, making her way to her dresser.

She ran a brush through her hair a few times until there weren't any knots, then tied her bangs back with a ribbon. The Haruno pulled her night shirt off and bound her chest with wrappings, before pulling on a small, black undershirt that was connected to wire mesh.

"Sakura?" her mother, Haruno Mebuki, shouted up, "I heard your footsteps, are you up?"

"Yes, mom," Sakura called down, tugging her dress on and zipping it up. Since she'd been studying late the previous night, she still had her spandex on. She yanked on her sandals and popped out of her room.

Mebuki opened the door to her own bedroom, yawning. "Do you need me to make you lunch?"

"No," Sakura said, shaking her head, "Since we're taking the test today, Hinata's helping one of her maids make bento's for us all."

"Well," Mebuki huffed, putting a hand on her hip, "You make sure that you bring her in some of the Haru Bakery's finest pastries."

Sakura rolled her eyes and started down the stairs, "I'll pick some up on the way out."

"Make sure to eat breakfast!" Mebuki shouted down, before going back to sleep. Since Sakura's dad came from a civilian background and her mom from Kiri, she had a well-mixed life. Haruno Kizashi woke up early in the mornings to bake and prepare the shop, and her mom went in an hour before it opened to run it.

It was a very good business, putting her family on Konoha's map in the civilian world. Any and all tourists were referred to the bakery as much as they were to the Hokage Monument or the famous Memorial Stones.

Sakura quickly heated up a skillet and cracked a few eggs into a bowl, beating them together with some vegetables and meat with her chopsticks. Around five minutes after she poured them into the pan and warmed the pre-cooked sausages in the oven, she took a seat at the table and dug into her food.

When the pinkette was done, she brought her dishes to the sink and quickly washed and dried them, putting them back in their places before grabbing her bag and leaving for the Academy.

When she finally got to the school, she quickly rushed into her classroom and looked around for any fangirls. Seeing none, she slid into the seat next to Sasuke. The boy turned to her and raised an eyebrow, "You haven't done that in months," he commented.

Sakura gave him a small smile and tried to hide her blush, "Ino wanted to sit next to you today."

"Couldn't she come in early, then?"

Sakura shook her head, "She needs time to get ready." Sasuke rolled his eyes and turned back to watching the window. Sakura put a hand to her cheek to feel if it had heated up. She let out a small sigh when she found that it felt normal.

Sasuke looked back at her out of the corner of his eye.

* * *

"Team Seven, Uzumaki Naruto, Haruno Sakura," Sakura looked up and turned to Naruto, who sat behind her. She held up a thumbs up, and he grinned back. "And Uchiha Sasuke," Iruka-sensei finished.

Sakura could feel Ino's shock from across the room and quickly raised her hand, "Um, sensei, why am I on this team?"

"It is tradition that the highest scoring child, Sasuke, and the lowest scoring child, Naruto, be put together with a kunoichi of high smarts," Iruka-senei explained, "You had the second highest score on the written test."

"But I'm the second highest," Sakura protested, "Shouldn't the highest be put on Team Seven?"

Iruka-sensei sighed, "She needed to be put on a team with two certain clan members; that is also tradition."

All heads turned to Ino, who looked like a deer in headlights. Sakura felt her eyes go wide, "But," she started, "But, I…"

"Sakura," Iruka-senei said, "The teams have been decided by the Hokage. You cannot change them."

"Yes, sensei," the pinkette murmured.

* * *

"I still can't believe it," Ino groaned out, brushing her hair. The trio of friends were all in no's bedroom, having decided to stay the night, "You got on a team with both of our crushes."

"Sorry," Sakura said, running a comb through her own locks.

Hinata shuffled around her bag for a brush to do her hair as well, "It's okay, Sakura-chan. T-The teams were made for a reason."

Ino sniffed, "They could _still_ take romance into account. Anyways, where are you guys going to wear your protectors? I'm using mine as a belt."

"Around my neck," Hinata said.

Sakura glanced down, "My forehead."

"That's unoriginal," Ino commented, "Why not as a headband?"

"That's what your ribbon is for."

"Hmmmm," she held up a strand of her hair, "I think I'm going to switch shampoos soon, this isn't silky enough. Oh! I got you guys some stuff!" The Yamanaka got up, pulling out a few boxes and handing them to her friends, "Here, open them!"

Hinata nodded, taking the top off. Inside was a sleeveless lavender hoodie and tight fitting, light weight pants, complete with about five pockets running up and down the outer sides of the legs. A belt with cylindrical holders hung off it and box-like pouch on the right lay under them both.

"The jacket has lots of compartments inside, too," the blond said, "Since you've liked poisons since Sakura lent you that book. The belt can hold your viles and senbon."

Hinata smiled, "Thank you, Ino-chan."

"No problem. There are also some bandages for you to wrap your wrists. I remember you mentioned that it helps with Juken. Anyways, Sakura! Your turn!"

The Haruno opened her, revealing a scarlet mock neck and matching gloves that went from the first knuckle on her hand to her shoulder. There was also a scarlet apron skirt that was slit on the front, back, and sides, where it was held together by buckles. Under it all were a pair of black, spandex short shorts.

"Ino," Sakura breathed out, "This is…"

"Amazing, right?"

"How much did it cost?" She asked.

"There is no way in hell you are paying me back," Ino snapped, "They're gifts. Got it?"

Sakura pouted, "Fine. But isn't the skirt _way_ too revealing?"

"There are some things called shorts," Hinata deadpanned, and Ino burst into giggles.

"Let's rest up," Sakura said, putting her clothes back in their box and pulling a blanket over her head, "We need to get up early tomorrow." Ino nodded and climbed into her futon, Hinata doing the same.

"Goodnight," The Hyuga called.

"Night," Ino mumbled.

Sakura smiled and closed her eyes. That night, she dreamt of onyx eyes and her lips turned up in a sly smirk.

* * *

" _I'm Haruno Sakura," I said, "I like…," I glanced down at the floor as Sasuke's face popped up into my mind, "…sweet things," I picked up, still staring downwards, "hanging out and training with my best friends Ino and Hinata, and reading up on strategies and different types of jutsu. I don't like…,"_ 'the fact that me and my best friend have the same crush,' _"…spicy foods, or when people look down on others."_

" _I currently don't have a dream," I lied._ _I looked up to find both Sasuke and Naruto were looking at me, along with Kakashi-sensei. Gulping, I added something else, "But I do wish to be a capable kunoichi," I finished up._

 _Kakashi-sensei nodded, "Okay, the grumpy chicken goes next." I found myself holding in a giggle._

* * *

The next morning, Sakura woke up before Ino and Hinata. She re-did her chest bindings, seeing as they had loosened overnight, and pulled on the mock neck Ino had gotten her. She slipped on her short shorts and apron skirt before tugging her gloves on.

Sakura wrapped her thighs and buckled up her holster. Running a brush through her hair a few times, she tied it back with Ino's ribbon. The pinkette looked down at her forehead protector, then to her skirt.

She quickly pulled the piece of clothing off and took the pins out of her protector, then re-did it on the left flap on the front of her skirt.

"There," she whispered to herself. Getting another idea, she took off her holster and wrapped the piece of cloth from the forehead protector around her wrappings, before putting her holster on again.

Sakura smiled, then slipped her stuff in her bag and threw it over her shoulder, heading down the stairs of the Yamanaka household. She quickly passed Inoichi, who was sipping on a cup of tea. She curtly explained her early departure – "Training, and I have to drop my stuff off at home" – and then headed out the door.

Sakura hurried down the street, passing by a few vendors who were starting to set up their stalls. A few gasped at how early the young kunoichi was up – seeing a thirteen year old waltzing around town at four in the morning was definitely not normal –, and immediately started firing questions at her.

One of them included Takashi, a boy that was a few years older than her and helped his father run their family's takoyaki stand.

"'Kura?" he asked, seeming a bit bewildered. Sakura stopped walking and turned to him. "What are you doing up so early?" he did a once over of her, and his eyebrows seemed to disappear into his hairline, "And why are you dressed weirdly?"

Behind the black haired, brown eyed boy, a balding man turned around, "Your father making you run errands this early?" Tadashi, Takashi's dad, asked.

Sakura shook her head, "No, I'm coming home from a friend's house."

"They kick you out or somethin'?" Tadashi asked, grabbing a few ingredients from a bin and starting to chop them up.

"No," Sakura said, "I just have to drop this off early, I have training from now on."

"Training…," Takashi muttered, before it all clicked, "You passed! Congrats, 'Kura!"

Sakura nodded in thanks, "I have to go," she said, waving goodbye and starting back down the street.

"Drop by with your teammates when you're done," Tadashi called down, "It'll be on the house!"

"Thanks!" Sakura called back. The pinkette smiled to herself and started to hum. Maybe her team wouldn't be as bad as she thought it would be.

* * *

A few hours later, she sat on the ground, erasing another drawing that she'd scribbled in the dirt with her hands. "This is so _boring_ , 'ttebayo!" Naruto whined, "It's been, like, ten hours."

From a few feet away, Sasuke glared at the blond. "It's only been three," Sakura corrected, drawing a face, then adding a few whiskers to it.

Naruto stared down at the drawing, "Is that me, 'ttebayo?" he asked, his eyes sparkling. The pinkette looked up to him, then added two triangles on top of the head.

"It's a cat," she said, before erasing it and starting on another doodle.

Sakura could hear Ino now. 'Sakura!' the blond would yell, 'What the hell are you doing?! Your nails are getting all dirty! Come with me, we have to clean them! If a boy sees, he could tell others and it would start a rumor that you don't care about your nails.'

"I don't care about my nails, though," Sakura muttered to herself. Sasuke's head shifted just enough so he could look at her. The Uchiha raised an eyebrow. Sakura felt her face heat up, and she quickly went back to drawing her family's shop.

While she and Sasuke couldn't be considered friends, they were closer than he was with any of the other peers. Unlike the crazy Sasuke fans in the class, who just stalked him and asked him out, when she went to talk to him, she was retrieving information for Ino.

And slowly building up a relationship between him and herself.

By the second year in the Academy, it dawned on Sakura that she was raising her chances of getting with him. She stopped talking to him for a month or two, but that only resulted in him stealing glances at her every once in a while.

So, after three months of chatting away with the boy, she made it known that she was only in it for Ino. Walking up to him after class, she'd started listing off her best friends best qualities and asked him to date Yamanaka Ino for the second time.

"What about your nails, Sakura-chan?" Naruto asked.

Sakura blushed and shook er head, erasing the picture in the dirt and starting to sketch a cherry blossom.

"Nothing," she said, looking down at her hands. Her nails were chalk full of dirt, the beds stuffed with it and the cuticles caked so much they looked brown.

Okay, maybe she should stop using her fingers to draw. At this rate, she'd actually chip a nail.

The Haruno knew she could retrieve a stick or a stone to draw with, but she really didn't want to leave and risk Kakashi-sensei arriving while she was gone. That would only make her look bad, and she didn't want to leave a bad impression of herself on her first genin sensei.

Then again, he was over three hours late. There was a chance she could go to the other side of the village to get a stick from the Nara compounds forest and return and the albino man still wouldn't have shown up.

Sakura sighed, "Why's he so late," she asked softly.

"Huh?" Naruto asked, leaning towards her, "Sakura-chan, I couldn't hear you."

"I said," she mumbled, "'why is he so late'?"

"Oh," he grinned and rubbed the back of his head, "Sorry, I can't answer that one, 'ttebayo." Sakura contemplated getting up and walking away.

"He was late yesterday, too," Sasuke spoke up, shocking Naruto.

"Teme," he started, which earned him a scowl from Sakura, "You actually talked willingly!"

"Of course he did," Sakura snapped, "He's comfortable with the people here. And don't call him Teme, it's rude."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow, "Comfortable?" he asked.

Sakura's face went red, "By that, I mean with Naruto," she said, somehow finding it within herself not to stutter, "You guys are friends, right?"

Naruto scowled, "Are not, dattebayo!" he exclaimed.

Sasuke grunted in agreement.

"Oh," Sakura said, looking to the ground, "My mistake. But, we could all be friends!" she turned to look at Naruto, then to Sasuke, "I mean, I know you both. 'A friend of a friend is my friend?' Right?"

"It's 'the enemy of my enemy is my friend,'" a voice spoke up, "But that could work, too."

Sakura, Sasuke, and Naruto all whirled around to find Kakashi-sensei standing right behind them, his visible eye curled up into a 'U.'

"You're late, dattebayo!" Naruto yelled, getting to his feet and pointing at his teachers face.

"Naruto," Sakura hissed, grabbing the back of his jacket and pulling him to the ground, "Be nice."

"Fine," he grumbled, crossing his arms as he glared up at his sensei, "But he's still late."

"We know," Sasuke mumbled.

"I bet you he knows, too," Sakura said lowly, turning to look at him.

Kakashi-sensei chuckled, "Well, you see, a black cat crossed my path and I had to take the long way around the village."

"That's ether a far-fetched lie," Sakura deadpanned, "Or you're one of the slowest Shinobi I know."

Kakashi-sensei looked down at her, "What happened to the quite little girl that I saw yesterday?"

"She disappeared," Sakura said, crossing her arms, "That's what happens when you deprive me of both food _and_ sleep."

"Oh!" Kakashi-sensei exclaimed, "You listened to me!" he turned to Naruto and Sasuke, "Did you two fast as well?"

They shook their heads yes. Kakashi-sensei nodded to himself, "Good," he said, and pulled an alarm clock out of kami knows where – Sakura really didn't want to attempt to figure out how.

The albino twisted a few thing-a-ma-jigs, then set it down on top of the stump, "Okay," he said, "You have until twelve to take these from me." He unfurled his hand and two bells jingled down. "Those who get them pass. The one who doesn't fails."

 **Whew, that was a bit harder to write than I first thought. I hope you all enjoyed this. I've had the idea floating around my head since I first saw Sakura and Ino's past together. R &R! ~Koi**


	2. Bells and Names: The Test of Teamwork

**Hey-o! It's Kyoshu Koi! Thanks so much for the reviews for chapter one! That's the most I've gotten for just a single chapter, ever. Seriously, thank you! You had me babbling to my best friend about it I was so happy! I hope you enjoy this chapter and continue to support Naruto, even though it's ended.**

 **The series has taught me many things about myself and has moved me in so many ways I can't help but almost feel indebted to it. With love, ~Koi**

* * *

"Come at me with the intent to kill," Kakashi-sensei said, looking at the genin's of Team Seven straight in the eye. A second passed in silence, then everything exploded.

Sakura tuned everything – mainly Naruto's protests – out. Two people. The pinkette knew she had to be one. She couldn't just leave Ino behind, she needed the Yamanaka. She also had to get Sasuke through, as well.

Ino would be crushed if he didn't get through. But, Sakura glanced over to Naruto; Hinata would be just as depressed if Naruto failed. _'What do I do?!'_ she thought, frantically going through strategies and ideas in her brain.

' _I can't leave ether of them behind! Naruto's like a brother, almost, and Sasuke…I wouldn't be able to…Ino wouldn't be able to…'_

Sakura plucked out a plan from her brain and immediately started analyzing it. If someone got a bell, they could cut it in half, then take the ringer inside of it and give it to the third person, that way, everyone would have a part of the bell.

Kakashi-sensei never said it had to be intact, after all. Sakura stored the plan away, then scoured for another one.

Everyone could make a clone and henge it into a bell, that wouldn't be too hard. Kakashi-sensei never said it had to be one of his bells. Sakura smiled; the plan had tons of loopholes. If she could just make use of those holes and get the others to use them, they could all pass!

She could also give the boys directions on how to get the bells. Being cunning and getting out of tough situations way part of being a kunoichi, after all, so maybe if she explained them to Naruto and Sasuke, they'd be able to pass using to idea's, then Kakashi-sensei could see how smart she was, then he'd pass her, too.

Perfect! That would be her first plan. The henge would be the back-up and separating the bells could be last resort.

"Sakura," Sasuke voice broke through her thoughts, "Are you okay."

Blushing, Sakura nodded, "Y-Yes. I'm fine, Sasuke-ku-san." He raised an eyebrow at the mistake, and Sakura felt her face beginning to burn.

"Is everyone ready?" Kakashi-sensei asked. He didn't even wait for anyone to say yes. "Start!" the man snapped.

"Naruto, Sasuke! I have an –" Sakura watched as the two sped into the forest, "idea," she finished. The pinkette looked around and sighed. Not even ten seconds in and her plan was a wreck.

"Gonna move?" Kakashi-sensei asked, his voice a bit too cheery. Sakura took a breath and slid her foot back, getting into the stance Hinata had taught her – though her hands were balled up into fists since she couldn't do juken.

Kakashi-sensei raised an eyebrow, "That's a Hyuga's battle stance," he pointed out, turning a page in his book.

"I know," Sakura said, shirting her elbow back a bit, "A friend taught it to me." She ground her foot into the dirt and spun around, ducking low to the ground and sending a fist towards Kakashi-sensei's kidney.

He simply stepped to the side as Sakura blew past him. Gritting her teeth, she straightened up and tried to punch him again, this time aiming for his lower back. She could practically see her teacher roll his eyes as her ducked to the ground and swiped at her feet with his own.

Sakura jumped over them, but he angled the tip of his right foot up so it hooked under her ankle mid-jump. Her eyes went wide. Kakashi-sensei did another eye smiled and yanked his leg back. Sakura yelped as her legs were pulled out from under her.

Her back hit the ground with a dull 'thwack,' and she looked up to find Kakashi-sensei reading his book.

"You're dead," he said, "The enemy's won." Sakura growled and scrambled to her feet. "Did I not just say that you're dead?"

"You did," she whispered, getting back into the Hyuga's fighting stance, "But this isn't a real battle, so I'm allowed to get up and try again."

A small spark of humor seemed to ignite in Kakashi-sensei's eyes as Sakura pushed her right leg back a little more. "Hah!" she yelled, and whipped around, bringing up the said limb and snapping it out in a high kick that was aimed at her sensei's head (though since she was so short, it only reached his shoulder).

Kakashi-sensei caught her ankle, and his eye widened a fraction of a millimeter, "You're stronger than you look," he said, "If you _somehow_ manage to pass, I'll have to take advantage of that."

Sakura felt a tic form on the back of her head and bent down backwards, pulling a kunai from her leg holster. Twisting around as best she could, she aimed at the back of her sensei's knee, ready to drive the blade in as deep as she could – there were medic-nin's for a reason, after all.

Kakashi-sensei raised his leg and kicked her kunai away, before pocketing Icha Icha.

Reaching down with his free hand he grabbed the back of her shirt and hoisted her up so she was level with his chest. "It's good that you changed to an outfit better suited for fighting," the Hatake said, lifting her up a bit more, "But that doesn't mean anything if you can't fight."

Kakashi-sensei threw Sakura back towards the tree line.

The girl yelped and attempted to twist midair. It didn't work, and she landed hard on her side, skidding over a root and through a thorn bush. Sakura held her arms up and prayed that her gloves would protect her arms.

When she finally stopped, Sakura realized she hadn't traveled at far as she thought. She was only a meter or two away from Kakashi-sensei. The said man put a hand to his chin, "Did I use too much strength?" he asked himself.

Sakura wanted to yell yes, but she knew that would give away her location. And not just that, she hadn't really gone that far, ether. If this had been a real battle, she knew she'd have broken bones and would have slammed into at least one tree.

Not only had the strength or stamina her sensei had used on her been little to none, he'd actually aimed to throw her into a soft spot. And to make it even better, it was right between two trees, so he'd made it look like it was a fluke.

"So this is a jonin," she muttered quietly to herself.

Struggling to her feet, Sakura let out an annoyed huff of air and pulled out two kunai. She turned around and dug them both into the tree next to her. The pinkette slowly climbed to the top, grabbing onto the lowest branch and hefting herself up.

She pocketed her kunai, and pulled a strand of hair out of her face. It'd grown out to reach her waist when pulled up in a ponytail, just the same length as Ino's and Hinata's. Sakura smiled to herself.

When Hinata had seen that her two best friends were growing their hair out, she decided to, as well. Though, while her hair was just as long the others, it was usually kept up in an elegant bun that sat on top of her head.

Sakura blinked and shook her head, wondering why she was thinking of her and her friend's long locks. She glanced around, looking for her teammates, and almost felt her eyes bug out of her head when she found Naruto hanging from a tree by his foot.

Shaking her head, Sakura started to scan for Sasuke, only to see his head lying on the ground. The pinkette nearly fell out of the tree at that.

"Just how long did it take me to climb this tree?" she muttered, grabbing onto the trunk to steady herself.

"Only a few minutes. I just dealt with both of them pretty fast." Sakura whirled around, only to find that she was on the ground again.

The Haruno looked all over to find Kakashi-sensei – she knew that drawl – but couldn't see him. The sound of branches shifting caught her attention, and she turned to face it, ready to right. Sasuke raised a hand in greeting, "Hey," he said.

Sakura blinked, "H-Hey?" she answered hesitantly.

He rolled his eyes and held out his other hand, uncurling his fingers to show two bells. "I got these, you can have one."

Sakura's eyes lit up, "That's great! I actually had a plan to take one apart and give everyone different pieces so we could pass, but we can just take the ringers out and give them to Naruto, instead!" Sakura knew she was rambling, but she just couldn't stop! The pinkette was just so happy that everyone could pass.

"I saw him hanging in a tree over there," she continued, "I think he fell for a trap or something."

Sasuke shook his head, "We don't have time for the dobe," he said.

Sakura frowned a bit, "We should," she said, "We'll make time. All three of us need to pass."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow, "Why?"

"Well," she said, looking down, "I need you to pass. It would be bad for Ino if you didn't." A splash of confusion swam around the Uchiha's eyes at the words. "And Naruto's a friend, so he has to pass, too. And then, I want to be a kunoichi, so I have to, as well."

Sasuke smirked, "Well," he said, "All three of us won't be able to pass."

Sakura's eyebrows knotted together, "Why?" she asked.

"Because I'm dead." He tilted his head to the side and it fell off, rolling towards Sakura's feet. The girl took in a shaky breath and looked down into his dull onyx eyes.

A shrill scream resounded throughout the forest as Sakura's brain shut down and she fainted.

* * *

When Sakura finally came to, she was lying on the ground, spread out at an odd angle. Groaning, the pinkette tried to give up, only for pain to blossom around her back. Sakura winced, "Ouch," she mumbled, her mouth feeling dry.

She rolled onto her stomach and forced herself up into a sitting position. Sakura looked up at the tree she'd climbed earlier, then down to her arms, which were bruised and ached in places they hadn't been before, and decided that she'd probably fallen.

"That must have been a genjustu," she said to herself, getting to her feet and brushing her skirt off. She'd read up on illusionary techniques, but she never imagined that they'd be that…that…

Sakura shook her head and lightly smacked her cheeks.

"Okay, Haruno," she said, raising her arms above her head and stretching, "We have to make three clones and henge them into bells. But," she sighed, "The others can't hold them."

Sakura took a breath and started towards the direction she'd last seen Naruto, "Maybe if I can get to them fast enough," she wondered out loud, "Then they can make one for themselves."

BRRRRIIIIINNNG!

Sakura's hopes were shot down at the sound of the alarm as the pink haired kunoichi realized the test was over. She dragged her feet back into training ground three's clearing to find that a certain blond haired, blue eyed prankster was tied to one of the three stumps that stood a few meters away from a black stone.

Kakashi-sensei looked to her from his position near the stone, then back down to his Icha Icha book, "Take a seat next to your teammate," he said. Sakura nodded, but he didn't acknowledge the gesture. As soon as she sat down, Sasuke strolled in front the opposite direction she'd come in.

Kakashi-sensei sighed and closed his book. Sakura wondered how he saw them with his only eye on his book. Getting up, he motioned for Sasuke to go over towards Sakura and Naruto. "You three," he said, "You fail. Not a single one of you got a bell."

Sakura opened her mouth to protest, but Naruto cut her to it. "That's not fair, dattebayo!" he yelled, "You're way stronger than us."

"So?" Kakashi-sensei asked, "Sasuke touched a bell, and Sakura was relatively close to almost touching one," the said girl scowled at that, "But you, Naruto, totally failed."

Sighing again, Kakashi-sensei ran a hand through his hair, "I'll give you one more chance for it, though. I'll be back in an hour or so. Sakura, Sasuke; there's bento's behind the stone over there. Since you guys came close to passing, you get to eat."

Naruto yelled something about wanting to eat as well.

Sakura ignored him. "Really?" she asked, saliva forming in her mouth at just the thought of food.

"Yes," Kakashi-sensei said, "Naruto, doesn't, though, so don't give him any."

"What?!" the Uzumaki screamed, thrashing around against his restraints. Sasuke and Sakura leaned away from his legs, neither of them wanting to get hit. "What about me?! Dattebayo!"

"Like I said, you get nothing," Kakashi-sensei said, "Just watch them eat." Naruto growled out some profanities, and Kakashi-sensei laughed. "On some missions, you won't have anything but soldier pills for at least a week; consider this training."

Naruto hissed out a string of insults directed towards the albino. "Though you won't be going on missions like that for a while," Kakashi-sensei laughed out. And with that, he held up a hand and disappeared in a swirl of leaves.

"Well," Sakura said, "That was a bit harsh." Neither of the boys replied, and the team's kunoichi quickly found the settings mood a bit awkward. A minute or two passed, and Sasuke got up and grabbed the bag that held the lunches behind the stone.

Returning, he handed one to Sakura, along with some disposable chopsticks. "There were only two," he said, grabbing his own lunch and utensils, "He must have known only two would do a good job."

"Teme," Naruto muttered.

Sakura sighed and popped the lid off the store-bought bento – she knew there was no way in hell her sensei would have actually made handmade food for his students – and started to dig in, only to stop with her chopsticks halfway to her mouth when she heard a loud rumbling.

Turning to Naruto, she quickly ate the lump of rice she'd been holding and snatched up an octopus wiener – yeah, Kakashi-sensei definitely didn't make it. "Here," she said, "Juts a bit of meat won't kill you."

"But," Naruto protested, "Sensei said you weren't allowed to, 'ttebayo."

Sakura scowled, "There's no way I'm letting you starve," she said, "You don't eat a lot on a normal basis, and when you do, it's ether bad quality or ramen. Skipping out on both breakfast and lunch is _not_ good for you."

Naruto nodded, "I know, 'ttebayo" he said, "But that's all I'm allowed to get."

Sakura sighed and shoved her chopsticks closer to his face, "Eat," she ordered, "Or I'm going to make Sasuke-san pry your mouth open." The said boy, who was currently chewing on a cherry tomato, raised an eyebrow.

Sakura fought back a blush at the sight. He just looked so cute when he was eating! Pushing down her inner fangirl, Sakura thrust the octopus wiener even closer to Naruto's mouth. When the blond opened it to protest again, she shoved the food in.

Naruto made a very interesting face as he started to chew. "Eat," Sakura whispered, picking up another piece of meat. He nodded and swallowed, before opening his mouth. Sakura was about to give him a meatball when Sasuke shoved his chopsticks into Naruto's mouth.

"If we both give him some, we'll each have more to eat ourselves," he explained, not stopping the glare he was sending Naruto as he talked.

Sakura nodded and popped the piece of food she was holding in her mouth. So, for the next ten minutes, they switched between eating and feeding their idiotic blond teammate. That is, until Kakashi-sensei poofed into the training ground with a puff of smoke.

"You three," he growled, and Sakura swore she saw thunder clouds suddenly appear, "Pass." Sakura blinked, then looked over to Naruto, then to Sasuke, before turning back to her teacher,

Putting her chopsticks down on the grass, she picked up her bento and chucked it at Kakashi-sensei's face.

* * *

Naruto had finally been cut down from the stupid he'd been tied to – the rest of Team Seven had actually left him there for a good five minutes as Sakura assaulted her sensei with a barrage of insults –, Kakashi-sensei had already left, and Sasuke was heading towards the Uchiha compound, ready to start his individual training.

Sakura suddenly looked up from the ground, remembering what Takashi had told her earlier. "Hey," she called, turning to her teammates. Naruto actually shifted his entire body once her voice left her mouth, but Sasuke only turned his head towards her.

"Um, I was wondering," Sakura said, "If you guys wanted to go out to takoyaki."

"Can't," Sasuke said, turning his head back to face forwards as he started to walk again. Sakura bit her lip and nodded – even though she knew he couldn't see it. The pinkette's spirits sunk for some unknown reason to her.

' _Don't,'_ she thought, mentally slapping herself, _'He's a teammate. It doesn't matter if he's good looking.'_

She shouldn't like the Uchiha, she knew that. Ino liked him, after all. Ino deserved him, too. She had gorgeous hair, a breathtaking face, and amazing hair. Her curves were just right, and she was extremely smart. Not to mention she was an heiress.

Sakura, on the other hand, well, her hair was pretty, but it was nothing compared to Ino's. And her face, while heart-shaped, couldn't hold a candle to her best friends. In fact, the only good thig about her was her eyes. Besides that, she just had scrawny arms and a flat chest.

"I'll go, Sakura-chan!" Naruto yelled, shaking her from her stupor as he jogged towards her. Sakura looked up at Naruto, taking in his looks, and decided that he was just as hot as Sasuke.

' _So why do I like him?'_ she wondered, _'It can't just be for the looks.'_ She glanced over to where Sasuke was walking away, then to Naruto's grinning face. _'Maybe it's the personality?'_

"Sakura-chan," Naruto said, "You're staring."

"I am?' she asked, rubbing her shoulder awkwardly, "Sorry," she said, "I'm just tired." She looked back to Sasuke, "I think I'm going to go home early."

"Really?" Naruto asked, seeming a bit disappointed, "What about the takoyaki?"

Sakura apologized again, looking Naruto straight in the eye, "Wanna go tomorrow?" she asked.

Naruto nodded, "Yeah, sure," he said, "Tomorrow." He turned around and waved goodbye, walking away with a little less pep in his step.

Sakura looked to him, then back to the training ground. Sighing, she sat down and ran a hand through her hair. "This is messed up," she muttered to herself, lying down on the grass. She stared upwards and glared at the clouds.

They seemed so lazy! They didn't even work as hard as her! All they did was drift along comfortably in the sky…

"Why am I kidding?" Sakura asked herself, reaching out towards them, only to find that her fingers were caked in dirt, "I don't even work hard," she muttered. All she did was train with Hinata when the Hyuga was down, study on her own, and gossip with Ino.

"The only reason I did well was because Kakashi-sensei grabbed onto my foot when I kicked at him," she kept going, starting a full blown rant, "And the form I used was so sloppy! My thumbs weren't wrapped around my fingers when I made my fists like I was supposed to.

"My brain reacted faster than my body did, and even when it did, its reaction was slow. My movements were choppy, too, and…and…and…"

"And you only drew a pointy thing near the end," a very familiar drawl stated.

Sakura sat up and stared at her teacher, "Kakashi-sensei," she said, "What are you doing here?"

"Visiting a few friends," he said, walking over to the black stone.

Sakura got up and followed him, "Are you meeting them here?" she asked.

He shook his head, "No," he said, running his hand over a few characters in one spot, then moving to another, a bit lower on the stone, and repeated the motion. Sakura squinted at the characters, and soon realized they were names.

"They're already here," he finished quietly.

"…Is this a memorial stone?"

Kakashi-sensei nodded, "Yeah," he said.

Sakura's eyebrows furrowed together, "I thought there was one in the field in the park."

"That's the Kyubi Attack Memorial Stone," her sensei corrected, "We also have an MIA Memorial Stone in training ground seven."

"Which one is this, then?" Sakura asked, bending down behind Kakashi-sensei and staring at the names. There were so many, she found it hard to distinguish them, even with the dots separating them. If sensei had found the names easily, he ether went often, or knew the exact placement by heart.

"KIA," Kakashi-sensei replied softly, his one visible eye scanning over the names again.

"Killed in action," Sakura muttered, staring past his hair to the names, "You were in the Third Shinobi World War, weren't you?"

Kakashi turned around, his eye crinkling up as he smiled behind his mask, "Did you think I was older?"

"Younger, actually," Sakura muttered, blushing a bit.

Kakashi laughed and motioned for her to sit down, "Both my teammates are on here," he said.

"I'm sorry."

He shook his head, "It was my fault they died, you shouldn't be sorry." Sakura glanced over to him. "Nohara Rin," he said, pointing to a name, before his finger shifted upwards to another one, "Uchiha Obito."

"Uchiha," Sakura said to herself, "That's Sasuke-san's clan, right?"

"Yeah, but you don't really see a lot of them anymore."

"What happened," Sakura asked.

Kakashi glanced over to her, "I don't think I have a right to say. If you want to know, ask Sasuke yourself." Sakura blushed and turned to the stone, then to her teacher. She got up and dusted her legs off.

"I'm going to head home," she said, "I'll see you in the morning."

Kakashi nodded, never looking away from the names carved into the memorial.

* * *

 **Okay, that was chapter two. So, I'll be updating every Thursday (so you can get a new episode of Shippuden and a new chapter of Fading Petals at the same time, yay!) until around mid August, then things may get a little hectic, since I'll be starting Freshman year (yippeee! Note the sarcasm). Don't forget to review! ~Koi**


	3. Training and Remembrance: Meet Team Gai

**Before you say anything, I'm simply trying to build relationships here. This is a SasuSaku fic, with no other pairings that have ether of the two in it. So Sakura's relationships with the others may seem romance like, but they're really not, okay? R &R! ~ Koi**

* * *

At three in the morning, Haruno Sakura woke up. She quickly went through her routine, washing her face and brushing her teeth – she takes her baths at night – and getting dressed. She grabbed a store bought bento her father had purchased the day before – at her request – for lunch, and an apple for breakfast.

She left her house with a quiet "I'm leaving" and hurried down the street to training ground three, eating the fruit she'd swiped as she jogged.

As soon as she got there, she put her lunch down behind the KIA stone and kneeled to the ground, putting her hands together in a quick prayer to those who died for the village. Sakura got to her feet and walked to the middle of the clearing and started her stretched.

She bent over and touched her toes, staying that way for a full minute before slowly getting back up into standing position. She fell into a lunge and pushed her legs forward, pulling her muscles to their limit.

Holding it for the same amount of time as her toe-touch, she bent back up and repeated the process with her other leg. Another minute and thirty seconds passed, and she bent backwards into a bridge position, pushing her stomach upwards as far as she could.

A minute and fifteen seconds passed, Sakura was counting, and she was getting ready to lower herself again – slowly, always slowly – when: "Young girl, what are you doing?"

Sakura yelped and hit the ground in a not so 'slowly, always slowly' way. _'Goddamnit,'_ she grumbled internally, _'that hurt.'_ Struggling to her feet, she turned to face a man dressed in…green spandex and orange legwarmers.

Sakura forced down a shiver. "I was training," she said, answering the question the fashion monstrosity asked.

The man in front of her grinned, his pearly whites gleaming in the light the sinking moon gave off, "That's very youthful, my youthful; child. I'm Might Gai," he pointed to himself, "Who are you, young blossom?"

"Haruno Sakura," Sakura said quietly, bowing lowly to him. When it came to people she'd only just met, she was very polite. Though Kakashi-sensei had been excluded from that, seeing as his actions made her respect for him go down.

"Sakura-san," Gai-san said, "You just recently graduated, yes?" Sakura nodded. "It is very youthful of you to dedicate yourself to training this early in your career."

"Thank you, Might-san."

"Tell me," Gai-san said, sitting down on the grass across from Sakura. The young girl hurriedly followed his actions, "What style of taijutsu do you use?"

Knowing that it was already bad enough that she knew the Hyuga taijutsu kata's, not to mention showed their fighting style to Kakashi-sensei, Sakura shook her head. "Only the Academy standards," she said.

Gai-san frowned, "Well," he huffed out, crossing his arms, "That's just boring." Leaning forwards, he grinned at Sakura, "Do you want to do some early morning practice with me and my team?" he asked.

Sakura's eyes widened, "W-Would I be able to?" _'I'll be able to train with experience shinobi!'_ she internally squealed, _'There's so much I could learn! I wonder if they have a kunoichi on their team, too!'_

He nodded, "Of course, I was just going to finish up my run to our training ground."

Sakura got to her feet, bowing lowly to Gai, "Thank you so much, Gai-san."

He smiled, teeth flashing, "Well then, come on! We don't want to be late!"

* * *

Sakura dragged her feet into training ground four, utterly exhausted. She'd had to sprint just to keep up with what Gai-san considered a 'light jog,' and even though they'd run from training ground three, training ground four was, surprisingly, a very long ways away.

Half the village away, to be exact.

Sakura, not wanting to seem weak, hid that she was tired, taking in small, sharp breaths, and forcing herself to stay upright. She looked up from where she was staring at the ground, halfway through the run she'd kept her gaze there to assure her mind her legs were still intact, and nearly felt her eyes bug out of their sockets.

"Sakura-san," Guy-san said, "This is TenTen," he pointed to a girl with twin buns, "Rock Lee," this time it was a boy who looked to be his son, "And Hyuga Neji," another boy, this one with his clan's dojutsu and a striking resemblance to Hinata.

"TenTen, Lee, Neji; this is Haruno Sakura."

For the second time that day, Sakura bowed lowly, "I'm Sakura," she said, "It is nice to meet you."

"Tch," a deep, baritone voice snorted out, "Guy, why are you bringing an Academy student here."

"Neji," Guy said.

"Actually," Sakura interrupted, straightening and motioning to her skirt, and the metal plate that was clasped onto the right edge, "I'm a genin."

Across the way, TenTen smiled, "It's nice to meet you, Haruno," she said, walking over and bowing slightly, "It'll be good to have another girl to practice with for once." Sakura nodded. "So," TenTen asked, "What's your specialty?"

"I don't know," Sakura muttered, rubbing the back of her head in embarrassment, "I only just two days ago." Neji snorted. TenTen turned around and shot the boy a dirty look.

"That means you can explore many things, Sakura-san!"

Sakura turned to Lee, "What do you guys specialize in?" she asked.

"Taijutsu," Lee and Gai-san said at the same time, while TenTen muttered "fuinjutsu" and "weaponry."

Sakura turned to Neji, and made sure to look at his eyes for a while, "Taijutsu?" she asked, pushing down a smile.

He frowned, "I'm guessing you're close with another Hyuga. Well it doesn't matter, one with no clan such as you is fated to be a failure." He turned around and started towards the tree line on the other side of the training ground.

Sakura watched him go, wanting to yell that the Haruno's, while they had no kekkai genkai, were a ninja clan in Kiri. She bit her tongue, though, just glaring daggers at the Hyuga's back. She turned to Gai-san and bowed, "I am sorry," she said, "I made him leave."

Gai-san shook his head, "That's where he trains. Anyways, what are your good points as a ninja?"

Sakura blushed and thought for a moment, "My sensei said I was strong," she said, "I know only that."

Gai-san turned to Lee and TenTen, "Set up traps in the forest, I will get you once I'm done teaching her some kata's. I trust you to sense me when I come and hide." Both genin's nodded and disappeared into the trees. Gai-san looked back to Sakura.

"Strong," he said, "But small," he gave her a once over, "And agile, by the looks of what I saw earlier. I have a style for you, but I only know a few kata's. You'll have to get a scroll at the library for the rest."

The jonin bent down into a forward lunge with his right leg, his left arm positioned firmly across his lower back with his palm open and resting against his skin. His right one was straight across his chest and parallel to the ground with his fingers curled into a fist.

Sakura hurriedly repeated the motion, and Gai-san got up to adjust her elbow, since it was bending down a bit. "Yosh," he said, stepping back, "I want you to stand up and bring your arms to your sides." Sakura did as he said. "Now, step into a backwards lunging with your right leg and your arms switched."

The Haruno moved her right arm behind her and her left arm in front of her. Gai-san again fixed her elbow, then nodded. "Got it?" he asked. Sakura nodded. "Good, I want you to stand up then fall back into the first kata. Make sure your elbow is high."

"Got it," Sakura said.

Gai-san smiled, "It feels weird, I know, but you'll slowly fall into it, then to motions will be easier to use in battle. I'm going to go after my students now. Good luck!" he sprinted off so fast, all Sakura could see was a blur of orange and green, mainly green.

Sighing, she stood, then bent into a forward lunge, raising her arms into the correct position and lifting her elbow until it felt a little too weird to be in its position. Staying there for – one, two, three, four – five seconds, she stood up again and fell down into a backwards lunge.

''While you should train your body,'' Iruka-sensei's voice recited in her head, ''you need to train you mind as well.'' Sakura decided to try to meditate while doing the kata's, and closed her eyes, slowly clearing her mind.

' _Bend.'_ Pushed away.

' _Stand.'_ Pushed away.

' _Elbow up.'_ Pushed away. Sakura was starting to think that meditation was easy. Maybe she could do some before bed, she'd just need to cut back on maintaining her hair.

. Sakura's eyes were still closed, but she kept on doing her kata's.

Breathing out, she stood, then did a backwards lunge, her arms against her chest and lower back. And, of course, her elbow was bent.

In Sakura's mind, however, she wasn't doing any of this. She was simply sitting down in an empty room, her legs crossed and her hands threaded through the others fingers. A few dozen doors lined the walls and rose up the ceiling.

Down near the floor level stood doors painted a light green, one that resembled her eyes, though a few shades lighter. In front of each of them stood important people to her. Mebuki, Kizashi, Ino, Hinata, Naruto – though his door wasn't as close to the ground as the others were – and Sasuke.

She needed to remove them, somehow, to make peace within herself. Sakura decided to use the same method as before.

' _Ino.'_ Pushed away – though with a bit of extra concentration. It was her best friend, after all.

' _Hinata.'_ Pushed away, again, with a little extra work.

' _Naruto.'_ Pushed away.

'Mom and Dad.' Pushed away, with more force needed than Hinata and Ino.

' _Sasuke.'_

Sakura winced and slowly, gently, pushed the boy's face and name away. Even though it wasn't as hard as her parents (she was a kid, she was used to ignoring them), Hinata (she didn't talk that much most of the time, anyways), or Ino (you learn to tune her gossiping out after a while), she wasn't used to having to do something like that to him.

She did idolize him, kind of. Not really. He was smart, handsome, and strong but…Sakura pushed that thought away too, and turned back to her family and friends.

Each of the figures stepped back into their rooms, and the doors softly shut. They didn't lock, however. Sakura didn't want to shut them out, she just wanted to clear her mind. And it was starting to do just that, actually. She was feeling calmer, too.

Breathing in, she slowly opened her conscious, trying to dig deeper into her brain. Maybe if she did this more often, she'd be more in control of her feelings and her body. And maybe even be able to throw her crush on Sasuke away and give him to Ino.

Sakura stopped in front of a door that was painted a deep, crimson red. The handle was crooked, too, and unlike the others, it had a lock, though it wasn't in use. Reaching out, she grabbed the doorknob and turned it…

…only to see a flash of the hem of a red dress and a few locks of pink hair. **'Not yet, Sakura, not yet.'** In the outside world, Sakura's eyes snapped open. **'You can't accept me yet.'**

Sakura stood and looked around, trying to find the voice. There was nothing. Only Kakashi-sensei, sitting in the corner and watching her…

"Gah!" Sakura shouted, flinching away from the man.

Her sensei smiled, "Are you awake now, Sakura?"

Sakura nodded, her heart calming down a bit. "Yeah," she said, walking over to Kakashi-sensei and sitting down next to him, "I was mediating," she explained, "so I didn't really notice you…"

"Gai told me you were training here," Kakashi-sensei said, smiling under his mask, "but I would have never expected you'd be mediating while doing kata's."

"R-Really?" Sakura asked.

Kakashi-sensei nodded, "It's hard to do, you know. You have to have lots of meditating practice under your belt to start doing it while moving. Do you meditate often?"

' _That was my first time,_ ' Sakura thought, before smiling and saying: "Yeah, Hinata, my friends=, taught it to me." It wasn't that much of a lie, after all, Hinata did mediate, and she had told Sakura a few tips before.

"I see," Kakashi-sensei said, looking up to the sky. Sakura followed his eyes, and her own suddenly widened. The sun was rising, that meant it was between five and five thirty, which meant she had a high chance of being late.

"Cra….," she turned to Kakashi-sensei, who was smiling at her, "…crow," she finished. **(A/N Crap and Crow sound similar in the Japanese language. Kuso and Karasu respectively. They sound similar in English too, though, so that's okay!)**

"Nice save," he commented. Sakura blushed.

"I'm late," she muttered, before turning to him, "And so are you."

"Actually, I was there before you all."

Sakura raised an eyebrow and put her hands on her hips, "Really?" she asked.

He smiled, "Genjutsu," he explained, and Sakura nearly face palmed.

"Why?" she hissed.

"Extra training," Kakashi-sensei explained, getting up and stretching, "But I might as well go early today. If you're doing kata's, then the others need to learn some, too. Which one were you using?"

"Blossom," Sakura said with a blush. Kakashi-sensei threw his head back and laughed.

"That works well for you," he said, "Built for small and flexible people, it was made for kunoichi respectively. You can put strength in it, too. I was thinking of teaching it to Naruto, but since you're using it, we need something else for him."

"Something that can use underhanded tricks and allow makeshift moves," Sakura added.

"I'll probably have to combine a style for him," Kakashi-sensei mused, putting a hand to his chin, "Maybe Fox-Bird?" he nodded to himself, "That'll work. What do you think for Sasuke?"

"He's the fastest in our grade," Sakura said, "And he's good with his kunai and shuriken."

Kakashi-sensei sighed, "I'll have to get the Uchiha style kata's from the Hokage, then. They utilize that, and some fire jutsu, since he already knows some."

Sakura frowned in confusion, "Can't he just ask for them?"

Kakashi-sensei ruffled her hair, "It's not that simple." Sakura scowled. "Anyways, grab a hold of my arm."

"Why?' Sakura asked, taking a hold of his sleeve.

"Shuishin," Kakashi-sensei deadpanned, referring to the technique where you flooded your body with chakra for a second to move at inhuman – or even more inhuman than normal – speeds. Sakura couldn't even say a word before her world disappeared into a swirl of leaves.

Three seconds passed, she counted. When Sakura was sure the said offenders left, she blinked her eyes open –she'd squeezed them shut sometime during the trip– and spat a leaf out of her mouth. "Thanks, sensei," she said sarcastically, stepping away from him and trying not to throw up as her stomach seemed to try and dance its way up her esophagus.

Naruto shot to his feet and pulled out a kunai, facing the opposite direction Kakashi-sensei and Sakura were standing. Sasuke lazily pushed himself up from his sitting position and sent a questioning look towards the young pinkette.

"Dobe," he said, "They're behind you."

Naruto whirled around and charged. Sakura yelped and darted to the side, away from the charging blond. Kakashi-sensei sighed and pulled out his Icha Icha book, slamming the spine down on top of the boys head once he got close enough.

Naruto made a sound that was a cross between a whine and a whimper, there was a bit more whimper in it than whine, actually, and collapsed to the ground, clutching his head and mumbling things about albino cyclopes' with orange… somethings, Sakura couldn't make the rest out, though she knew he probably meant the book.

"Good morning," Kakashi-sensei said, flipping his book open. Sasuke nodded in greeting and Naruto muttered a 'mornin', 'ttebayo.' "So," Kakashi-sensei continued, "Today, I'm going to teach you a few kata's. When we're done, I'm sending you to the library to check some things out."

Naruto shot to his feet, "Katas? What are those? And why do we have to go to the library?! Dattebayo!"

Sasuke sighed, "Kata's are repeated positions that will help you learn a fighting style," he explained,

Kakashi-sensei whistled, "Wow, that's the most I've ever heard you talk."

Sasuke scowled at him, "Hn."

"The library is so you can get scrolls for the kata's," Kakashi-sensei continued, explaining the last part of the day to Naruto, "Understood?"

"Yeah, 'ttebayo," the Uzumaki muttered.

"Good," Kakashi-sensei clapped his hands together, "We're going to warm up. First, stretches. Naruto, you're with me. Sasuke, Sakura," he smiled, "Just don't get to intimate." He proceeded to drag Naruto to the other side of the training ground.

Sasuke's glare was as cold as Sakura's face was hot. The poor girl was red from the tips of her toes to the edge of her ears. "Um, ah, uh, w-w-w-w-what s-s-s-s-s-should we st-st-st-st-start w-w-with?" she asked, wanting to crawl into a hole and die.

Sasuke looked at her and shook his head, "Calm down," he said, "Kakashi was just joking." Sakura turned to look at him. Uchiha Sasuke, the social outcast, was talking about someone that was joking. "Okay," he mumbled, "Maybe I'm not one to talk, but just," he sighed, rubbing the back of his head, "Stop looking like some kind of fangirl."

Sakura nodded, "S-Sorry," she muttered.

Sasuke rubbed his face, "First year of the Academy all over again." It took Sakura a second to realize he was referring to her behavior. The actual idea almost sent her face into full blown tomato mode again.

Sasuke actually remembered what she was like seven years ago.


	4. More Than a Little Skin: Team Training

**To clear up why Sakura and Sasuke can't see Naruto's seal, they don't know about Naruto's fluffy little problem, yet. And yes, Naruto knows about Kurama, it's just that Sakura never saw any of the Mizuki incident so it's not in chapter one. R &R! ~Koi**

* * *

"Do as many push-ups as you can until you drop!" Kakashi-sensei called when stretching was over.

Sakura wanted to die halfway through the said activity, seeing as both herself and Sasuke had had to push each other down so they could stretch farther. Not to mention the stretch where they had to loop elbows and pull the other cross their back. The poor pinkette had been blushing the entire time.

'He's for Ino,' was her mantra the entirety of it all. Though, she didn't say it aloud, of course.

Getting to the ground, Sakura found that her hair only fell over her face when she tried to do a push-up. She sat back up and pulled it out of her face, huffing a bit. "Kakashi-sensei," she called hesitantly, "You wouldn't happened to have some kind of hair tie with you, would you?"

"Hm?" the said jonin looked up from his book.

"Do you have a hair tie?' Sakura asked again.

"Hmmmm," Kakashi-sensei thought for a moment, before shaking his head, "Nope," he said, "But I do have some trap wire."

Sakura sighed, "Can I use some of that." A minute later, Sakura had received a small length of wire, which she tied into a loop then used to tie her hair back. It wasn't that hard, she just had to be careful she didn't cut her fingers. But, besides that, the wire worked nicely.

Tightening her ponytail, Sakura got back down and started to do her push-ups. Naruto was still going, counting twenty out at a slow pace. He seemed to start struggling a bit around fifteen, but didn't look too tired as he continued past the number.

Sasuke was slightly faster than Naruto, and he didn't seem to be breakings a sweat – did he even sweat? – and was around twenty-five, if she was reading his lips correctly. His eyes were focused, staring straight in front of him and he mouthed the numbers silently.

' _He must do this a lot in his spare time,'_ Sakura thought, before shaking her head and bending her arms down into a shaky push up. She nearly groaned, and was huffing at ten. When she practiced with Ino and Hinata, it was never about strength, but form.

Not to mention Ino would only do exercises that would help her stay skinny and fit.

Sakura dropped at twenty, sitting up and blushing. Naruto was shaking, but kept up his pace. Twenty seconds later, he dropped at forty. Sasuke lasted another minute, before stopping at fifty-five. Kakashi-sensei looked up and raised an eyebrow.

"Numbers?" Each kid mumbled theirs, and Kakashi-sensei shook his head. "Sit ups are next," he ordered, "Every day you are going to up the number you are at by five. No trying, doing. Got it?"

"Yes," Team even chorused, before getting on their backs and starting their sit-ups.

Sakura was actually confident in herself with this exercise, and was happy to find that she was able to keep up with Sasuke in it. Their paces were even, though their numbers were slightly off, seeing as since Sakura had a chest – no matter how small – she touched her legs a bit earlier than her crush, though she won't admit it, did.

Naruto struggled more with the sit-ups than the push-ups, and was struggling to make his chest meet his knees. "Why, 'ttebayo?" he huffed out.

Kakashi-sensei chuckled, "Kata's and ninjutsu aren't going to help you with everything. You need to be able to grab onto things and haul yourself up easily."

The Uzumaki mumbled something under his breath, before counting thirty-five aloud and dropping onto his back. Sakura and Sasuke were left, and even though both were exhausted, they kept going. Sasuke wasn't going to lose to Sakura, and Sakura wanted to just keep going.

Only went she realized that she was struggling to touch her knees at seventy did she realize she had to do more the next day. The pinkette dropped to the ground, her ponytail trailing behind her. "Done," she said, closing her eyes and turning over onto the cool grass.

Sasuke stopped five seconds later, huffing a bit as he lay down. "Hn," he grunted out.

"Dattebayo," Naruto whined.

"Well," Kakashi-sensei said, snapping his book closed, "that wasn't too bad, excluding Naruto's number."

"Oi!"

"Give me a lap around the village, you can jog or sprint, just stay together, and then we'll move onto the actual training," Kakashi-sensei said, getting up, "I'm going to go out and grab something to eat, since it'll take you guys a while."

Sakura raised a shaky hand and held up a thumbs up, "Got it, sensei," she muttered into the ground, "You're ditching us."

Kakashi-sensei smiled, "Exactly."

* * *

An hour later, Sakura, Naruto, and Sasuke all dragged their legs into training ground three to find their sensei sitting in front of the memorial stone, staring at the names. "Kakashi-sensei," Naruto called, "We're done, dattebayo."

The albino turned away from the characters engraved in the obsidian, "Alright," he said, getting to his feet. He tossed a scroll to each of the kids, "These will be yours to keep, I bought them. The rest of the kata's, though, you'll need to find in the library."

Sakura gaped, "Thank you, sensei," she said, "How much do I owe you?" Beside her, Naruto started to check his pockets for loose changes to give to his teacher.

Kakashi-sensei shook his head, "You owe me nothing, consider these gifts for becoming genin. Now, I want all of you to take your tops off."

Sakura blinked, then squealed, hiding behind the first person she found, who happened to be Sasuke. Naruto stared at Kakashi-sensei, "Pervert," he deadpanned.

Kakashi-sensei laughed, "Not like that, you idiots. I have these," he held up three sheets of paper, each with the same Konoha symbol on it, "These will be pasted on your body like a tattoo. Don't worry, they come off."

"What do they do?" Sasuke asked, stepping to the side to cover Sakura a bit more. Naruto shifted to, holding out an arm in front of the girl. Unknown to them, the pinkette only blushed.

Kakashi-sensei held up a scroll, "They show me what kind of exercises you need to do to be able to use your fighting style to the best of your ability. Now," he smiled and let a small wave of killing intent seep out, "strip."

"Shirts only, though," he added, "and Sakura, you can keep your undershirt on. There's no way I'm letting you walking around with only chest wrappings with two pubescent boys next to you."

The girl nodded and stepped back. Naruto grumbled something but pulled on his jacket. "Mesh, too, for you boys," Kakashi-sensei added. The blond yanked his mesh armor off and walked over to the stumps, throwing them over one of them.

Sakura turned away to pull off her mock neck, only to see Sasuke yank both his shirt and mesh armor off in one swift movement. She went beat red and stumbled back, covering her face with her hands.

' _Don't get a nosebleed,'_ she thought to herself, trying to push the image of Sasuke's chest out of her mind. _'Do_ not _get a nosebleed, Sakura. Don't you dare embarrass yourself.'_

Both Sasuke and Naruto were well sculpted, and while they didn't have abs yet, Sakura could only imagine both of them grown p and shirtless, they were both extremely gorgeous. Moat girls didn't even notice how hot Naruto was because of his pranking personality.

"Oh how wrong they are," Sakura mumbled to herself, looking up from her palms…only to find her shirtless teammates staring at her. Blushing a bit, Sakura fiddled with her hands like Hinata, "Um," she said, "Could you turn around?"

Naruto blinked, before going red and closing his eyes, covering them with his hands as he turned his back to her. Sasuke's cheeks dusted a light pink, his ears a few shades darker, and he nodded, turning around. Kakashi laughed and did the same as the two boys, smiling the entire time.

Sakura grabbed the edge of her shirt and pulled it over her head. She adjusted her undershirt, making sure her the leather part that was covering her bindings was in place. She looked to see if any of her wrappings were visible, then tightened the upper leather part.

"I'm good," Sakura said, and everyone turned around. Naruto immediately blushed and started whacking his head on a stump. Sasuke scowled and reached over with his leg, kicking the blond hard in the back.

"Ow!" he yelped, whipping around and holding the sore spot, "What was that for?! Dattebayo!"

"For ogling our teammate when you're supposed to be working," the Uchiha said dryly.

Kakashi-sensei raised an eyebrow, "Oh-ho? Is there something going on between our little blossom and death king here?"

"No!" Sakura shouted, a little too quickly and a little too loudly, "I mean, no, there's nothing." Sakura straightened up a bit, "But I do, however, know someone that would _love_ to hook up with him."

Sasuke groaned and ran a hand over his face, "For the last time," he grumbled, "I am not dating Yamanaka."

"Please?" Sakura asked, completely forgetting about Naruto and Kakashi-sensei, "Just give her a chance."

Kakashi-sensei cleared his throat, "While this is amusing," he said, "please keep any and all relationships out of team time. I don't care whose baby daddy you are or whose tonsils you sucked out in the past week; this is training, not a social event. The Academy is over and done with."

"We're twelve," Sasuke deadpanned, "There's no way we'll be doing that."

"Yeah, 'ttebayo," Naruto said, "Teme's right! We're only twelve."

"I'm thirteen," Sakura piped in.

"That doesn't make a difference," Sasuke said.

Naruto, on the other hand, gaped, "You're older than us?!"

Kakashi-sensei shook his head, "You get sidetracked so easily. Okay," he said, this time directing the words to his students, "Now that you all look like you're part of a porno," Sakura and Naruto went beet red at this, "Come here and I'll put the tattoo on."

Kakashi-sensei pulled a towel and a water bottle from somewhere – Sakura truthfully didn't want to know – and grinned, "Who's first?" He scanned all three, "Okay, grumpy!" Before Sasuke could even protest, Kakashi-sensei had somehow crossed the distance between himself and his team and placed one of the strips on Sasuke, taking the towel – which he'd poured water on – and holding it over the tattoo.

The boy sucked in a breath through his clenched teeth, "What the hell?" he growled, rolling his shoulders. Sakura watched as his muscles shifted a bit and fought down another blush.

"Oh, yeah," Kakashi-sensei said, "I forgot to mention it's going to burn."

"I hate you," Sasuke hissed. Kakashi-sensei chuckled at that. Ten more seconds passed, and he took the towel away. Sakura and Naruto leaned closer as he peeled the strip off, leaving a black Konoha symbol right over their teammate's heart.

Kakashi-sensei stepped back and pulled out his scroll. The characters for 'Uchiha' appeared. "Sakura," he said, "You're next." The pinkette nodded hesitantly and stepped forward. "I need you to pull your mesh up a bit."

Sakura complied, and Kakashi-sensei put the strip on her side, a few centimeters above her hip. He wetted the towel with the water again and placed it over the temporary tattoo. Sakura hissed. The albino was right, it did burn.

Ten seconds passed again, and Kakashi-sensei peeled the strip off. Turning to Sasuke, he raised an eyebrow, "Are you going to keep watching or are you going to practice?" the Uchiha glared and headed off towards the other side of the training grounds clearing, unraveling his scroll and studying the kata positions.

The Hatake turned to Sakura next, "You, too." She nodded and headed off. "Okay, Naruto, come here."

* * *

As promised, Sakura took Naruto out to takoyaki after training. The two had done some final stretches and asked Kakashi-sensei or Sasuke if they wanted to come along – okay, it was mainly Sakura who asked – but were turned down by both men.

After throwing their shirts back on and fixing their hair, again, mainly Sakura, they headed out to Takashi and Tadashi's stand. "Excited?' Sakura asked as they turned into the market section of town.

Naruto nodded, "Yeah, 'ttebayo! I've never had takoyaki before."

Sakura just stared at him, "Really?"

"Really, dattebayo."

She shook her head, "Tadashi is going to stuff you chalk full of takoyaki." Naruto laughed.

As they passed by a few stalls, Sakura watched as civilians scowled at the blond next to her, muttering horrid things under their breath. The pinkette never understood why people hated him. Sure, he'd pranked most of them, but they weren't that bad.

The worst the Uzumaki had done was paint the Hokage monument – though Sakura, Hinata, and Ino secretly found it hilarious. He'd never even hurt anyone.

"Ne, Naruto," Sakura said.

"Yeah, Sakura-chan?"

Sakura looked over to the boy and shook her head, "Never mind."

* * *

"So," Ino said, hugging the pillow in front of her, "How was training today?" The Yamanaka had invited both Hinata and Sakura over to her house for dinner, and the three were currently in the blond's room, talking about their teams and training schedule.

"It was good," Hinata replied, "Kurenai-sensei said that we were a tracking team, so she decided that for morning practice she'll hide somewhere in the village and we'll have to find her."

Ino huffed, "That sounds boring."

Hinata shook her head, "Not really, it allows me to get used to working with Kiba-san and Shino-san. And it's easier to use my Byakugan if I practice with it."

"Hm? That's interesting," Ino sighed, plopping her chin down in her hand, "I wish I had a dojutsu, they're so cool. And they look pretty."

"Really?" Sakura asked, before realizing her mistake, "I mean, they do look cool, but if you saw them in battle," the pinkette shivered, "I'd turn tail and run."

"Why?" Ino asked.

Sakura shrugged, "I don't know, I mean, most people with dojutsu's are naturally strong. Right, Hinata?"

"I guess," the Hyuga said, pursing her lips a bit, "it still takes time to build up your strength."

"But it gives you an advantage?"

Hinata nodded, "Yes, it does."

"Oh! Oh!" Ino shouted, sitting up straight, "So I did some research into Sasuke-kun's family, you know, the Uchiha clan?"

Hinata and Sakura shared a look. Ino never really knew her boundaries with some stuff. She went so far sometimes, and the two had to pull her aside more than once to explain to her she wasn't able to do it. It didn't always work though.

"Anyways," Ino continued, "I hear they have a dojustsu, too!'

"Really?" Hinata asked.

"Yeah, I couldn't get the name or what it's like, but I hear it's insanely powerful!" Ino sighed dreamily, "I wonder what it would be like if he stared at me with those eyes. Sakura."

"What?" she asked.

Ino leaned forward and grabbed her best friend by the shoulders, "If you ever see it, you have to draw it for me, got it?"

Sakura nodded slowly, "Got it." _'I really don't get Ino sometimes,'_ the pinkette thought to herself.

"So, Sakura," Hinata said, "Training with Sasuke-san and Naruto-kun? How'd it go?"

Sakura blushed, "We just did kata's that Kakashi-sensei taught us."

Ino swooned, "Sasuke-kun doing a kata. God, the only thing better than seeing his muscles in action would be seeing him shirtless!" The blond squealed and threw her pillow in the air. She then started to roll around on the floor, holding her hands to her chest as she muttered things about the great and powerful Uchiha Sasuke.

Hinata caught the pillow Ino threw and handed it to Sakura, who reluctantly took it. "Imagine," Ino huffed out when she calmed down, "Sasuke-kun doing kata's while shirtless!"

The image, which she'd seen only a few hours ago, popped up in Sakura's brain. Her face lit up scarlet and shook her head, "Ino," she whined, "Get up."

"No."

Sakura chucked the pillow she was holding at Ino's head. The blond sputtered and spat a few times before ripping the fluffy object off her face and sitting up, "Sakura!" she yelled, "Why'd you do that?"

The said girl shrugged, "I don't know."

Ino rolled her eyes and hugged the pillow to her chest once again, "Did you see any interesting things on Naruto?' she asked, waggling her eyebrows at Hinata. The Hyuga blushed a vivid shade of red and suddenly found interest in her hair, playing with a few strands.

"Well," Sakura said, "He was actually really good at push-ups."

"R-Really?" Hinata asked, glancing up.'

Sakura nodded, "Yeah," she said, before switching to a serious tone, "but he's sucky at sit-ups."

Hinata giggled a bit at that, and Ino sighed dreamily, "Sasuke-kun's good at everything," she said, "I wish I was you, Sakura." The blonds nose curled up in disgust, "I'm stuck with a lazy ass and a fatso."

"Shikamaru-san is really smart," Sakura protested, "I hear his IQ is pretty high. And he seems to be motivated when he wants to be," she raced her brain for some good points for Ino's other teammate, "And Choji-san is…kind."

Ino smiled, "Ohhh? Don't tell me you have a crush on Shikamaru."

' _I have a crush on Sasuke,'_ Sakura deadpanned in her head, before realizing her mistake, _'Wait! No! I don't!'_ "No," Sakura said, scowling, "I was just saying good things about him."

Ino scoffed, "If you can find good things in him, then you must like him."

"Ino," Hinata chastised, "That's just an assumption."

"It's the same for you with Naruto, though," Ino huffed, squeezing her pillow a bit tighter.

"Look," Sakura said, "I don't have a crush on –"

"Girls!" Inoichi yelled up, interrupting Sakura mid-sentence, "Dinner!"

In a flash Hinata and Ino were racing down the stairs, trying to beat each other to the food first. Sakura sighed and followed right behind them, happy the conversation was over.

* * *

"Sakura, honey, what are you doing?" Sakura stopped in the middle of one of her kata's, which involved some kind of high kick, and stared at her door. Kizashi was standing in the doorway, staring at his daughter with concern.

Sakura suddenly lost her balance and fell onto her floor with a loud 'thunk.' "Ow," she mumbled rubbing her butt, "Dad," she said, "What are you doing here?"

"I heard a commotion coming from your room," he said, as if it was obvious, "What are you doing?"

"Kata's," Sakura said, blushing a bit as she got to her feet.

Kizashi raised an eyebrow, "River spirits (kappa)?" he asked.

"Kata," Sakura corrected, stressing the syllables, she stepped forward and started to shoo her dad away, "Now go," she said, "Since I'm making a commotion here, I'll just practice at the training ground."

Kizashi glanced at the clock in the hallway, then back to his daughter, "At five in the morning?"

"Training starts at six."

He frowned, "Isn't it dangerous to go out that early?"

"There'll be patrols," Sakura said, "And if something happens I can kawarimi myself out of there." Kizashi blinked. "I'll replace myself with a random object," she explained.

He nodded and bent down, kissing her forehead, "Be safe, okay?"

Sakura sighed, I'm a ninja, dad," she said, "My life will _never_ be safe."

"I know," Kizashi replied, "But a dad can dream."

"Goodbye, father," Sakura said, closing her door.

* * *

 **So my friend asked me what songs I would use for the opening and ending for Fading Petals if it was an anime. Now, that would never happen, since this is a fanfic. But I can always dream. Haha!**

 **Anyways, I'd probably use Kimi ga Yobu no Nara (which roughly translates to 'if you call for me',) by Fujita Maiko for the ending since it's just so beautiful and seems to reflect the SasuSaku relationship. The opening would most likely be Clock Strikes by One OK Rock. Just listen and you'll understand, it just has an opening feel to it.**

 **I actually listen to these while I write, along with random NightCore mixes and AKB48 songs. Anyways, R &R! ~Koi**


	5. Climbing Trees: Control is Key

As soon as they got to the library, the genin of Team Seven split up. Not because they didn't want to be anywhere near the loud, boisterous Naruto in a whisper only building, he was pretty quiet, actually, but because all their kata scrolls were in separate shelves.

Sakura pulled a Blossom style kata scroll out and started to look it over where an ear shattering scream was head. A kunoichi only a meter or two away from her yanked out a kunai from her holster and sent Sakura a look.

The girl repeated the action and nodded to the older woman. "Get out!" a female voice yelled, "Idiotic demon brat!" Both Sakura and the kunochi's faced hardened as they put their weapons away.

The woman immediately scowled and stormed off from the other side of the shelf, muttering about how civilians should respect someone who'd had their lives thrown away from birth.

Sakura's eyes drew together in confusion. She shook her head and peeked around her side of the shelf to see if a certain boy was okay, only to find Sasuke's head in her way. The boy was only a row in front of her, and was staring at thing event she'd hoped to see.

Stepping out a bit more, Sakura watched as a blur of orange darted out the library door before sighing and dragging a hand over her face.

"He didn't even do anything," she said loudly, getting the attention of both the librarian that had just kicked her teammates out of the library and the civilians that had thought nothing of it. A few shelves down, some other shinobi scowled at the woman as well.

"He was being a nuisance," she librarian sniffed. Sakura's face grew red. Oh she didn't. Naruto hadn't even done a thing! People like her were the reason that the poor boy hated going into public places! The blond had been fidgeting the entire way to the library, practicing his quite voice just so he didn't annoy anyone!

"How?" Sasuke asked, surprising Sakura, who was about ready to give the woman to her father so he could bake her into a cake. "He didn't even make a noise," the Uchiha said.

The woman opened her mouth to say something, but ended up closing it. After a few seconds, she turned up her nose, "I don't want to hear anything from the heir of a cursed clan," she spat. Sasuke went ridged.

"Take that back," Sakura snapped, losing all control of her actions as she stepped closer to the woman. "The Uchiha's are a clan of Konoha," she said, "they hold more honor in their little finger than you do in your entire body."

The woman gasped, "How dare you," she said, "I am a part of the civilian council."

"And we are shinobi," Sasuke countered, glaring daggers at her.

"You are children," she corrected.

"Who know enough moves to put you in the hospital," Sakura said. Around them, the civilians that had been silently watching gasped and started to mutter. This surely wasn't the cute little Haruno Sakura-chan they knew.

"Is that a threat?" the woman asked.

"It's a fact," Sasuke answered.

"Oh really?" she crossed her arms, "Then I assume that demon can do that as well?" she sneered, "I don't understand. How can our Hokage be so stupid as to let that child be a shinobi, after all he's a –"

"I'm afraid you'll have to stop there," one of the other shinobi in the library said, "Saying anything else is against the law." The woman huffed and turned around walking away.

Sakura turned to Sasuke, "What style was Naruto again?"

"Fox and Bird," he said, turning back to his shelf, "I was going to check out Crow since it's similar to my families kata's, so I'll pick up Bird since it's close."

Sakura nodded, "I'll get Fox."

"Hn. The dobe better be grateful."

* * *

"Okay," Kakashi-sensei said once he arrived. He was, surprisingly, only a half hour late. "I've made a schedule for us. I choose who I want to work with on what day for individual training, for them, I'll arrive early. Kata's will be on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and whatever I've decided we're going to focus on is going to be on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays."

Sakura raised a hand, "What about everything else?" she asked.

"Your strength and stamina conditioning will be done on your own time," Kakashi-sensei explained, "I don't have time in our training regimen to deal with all that."

Sasuke rolled his eyes, "That's because you're always late."

Kakashi-sensei glared at him, "Today," he said, "We'll be starting something very important to a ninja. It's something that will make or break your life in this profession." Sakura's eyes lit up. Naruto grinned, inching closer. Even Sasuke looked a bit interested.

"However," Kakashi-sensei continued, "If you feel that you won't be able to do all of your conditioning in your spare time, then we can do it instead of our focus'."

"No!" Sakura and Naruto shouted at the same time, wanting to learn the important thing. Sasuke glowered at his teacher. The look alone said that he agreed, even if he didn't voice it.

Kakashi-sensei smiled, "Okay then. Starting today, we'll be climbing trees."

Silence filled the training ground. It was so quiet, you could almost head Sakura's jaw fall open. From the trees surrounding a clearing, a bird chirped. The single sound broke the genin out of their stupor.

"You have got to be kidding me," Naruto said, "You have got to be fucking kidding me, dattebayo!" The blond started to wave his arms around as he spoke, "All we've done so far is learn fighting stances and do physical work! Now you're making up climb trees?! Dattebayo!?"

"Naruto," Kakashi-sensei said, "Calm down."

"No, 'ttebayo!" the Uzumaki shouted, "I won't calm down! This is stupid, dattebayo! We should be learning to be ninja's! Not brats!

"Kakashi," Sasuke growled, stepping forward, "The dobe's right, we shouldn't be doing something so childish. We need to become stronger."

Sakura blinked. _'Did he really just agree with Naruto?'_ she thought to herself, shell shocked that the Uchiha would even think about saying the words. **'I know! It's such a surprise!'** a voice replied. Sakura stiffened and glanced around.

No one.

' _It was probably just my imagination,'_ the pinkette concluded.

"Do you mean all of us need to be stronger," Kakashi-sensei asked Sasuke, bringing Sakura back to the present, "Or that you need to be stronger." The boy was silent. "You're selfish, you know," the albino continued, getting Naruto's attention at the words.

"What does this have to do with you being a terrible teacher?" Sasuke asked, crossing his arms.

"You don't want the team to get stronger," Kakashi-sensei continued, "You don't give a crap about the others." He was raising his voice now, and Sakura was starting to get scared, "You only want power! You want power to kill someone for what they did to you and your family!"

Naruto winced, backtracking away from the albino. Sakura followed in suit, taking a few steps away from her enraged sensei. Sasuke's jaw tightened, "You should stop while you can," he hissed through his clenched teeth.

"Do you really think," Kakashi-sensei said softly, ignoring the young boys warning, "That you'd ever be able to Itachi on your own?"

"Shut it!" Sasuke snapped, stepping forward, "They can't do anything to help me! Not you, not them, not anyone in the village! Don't you dare go running your mouth about things that don't concern you!"

Sakura's eyes widened. That was the loudest she'd ever heard him talk. "S-Sasuke-san," she said, "You should calm…" her eyes went wide, "Down…," she mumbled, staring straight at his eyes.

"What?" he growled lowly.

"Red," she muttered. Then, in the blink of an eye, it was gone.

"Sakura-chan," Naruto said, "What do you mean, 'ttebayo."

"Nothing," Sakura muttered, shaking her head and rubbing at her eyes, "I just, I thought I saw something."

Sasuke let out a breath and ran his hand over his face. "Calm down now?' Kakashi-sensei asked cheerily. The boy said a few nasty things about the albino, enough to make sakura cover Naruto's ears. Kakashi-sensei clapped his hands, "Well then," he said, "I'm going to demonstrate climbing the tree."

He walked over towards the tree line. Sakura waited for him to stop and grab a hold of one of the towering plants, only to stare in shock as he kept going, walking straight up the trunk of one of the trees. It was as if gravity was ignoring him!

"No. Way," Naruto whispered, gaping at his teacher. Beside him, Sasuke's eyes almost bugged out of his head.

"Well then," Kakashi-sensei called down, "Anyone have any idea how I'm doing this?"

"Magic?" Naruto supplied. Sasuke whacked the boy over the head at that. "Ouch!" the blond whimpered out, holding the sore spot as he turned to glare at the Uchiha, "Teme!" he shouted, turning towards his rival, "What was that for?"

"You were being an idiot," Sasuke said bluntly.

"Was not!" Naruto huffed out, turning his nose up, "Besides, it's not as if you have any better ideas, do you?" Sakura took the t reddening of the boys ears as a no. The pinkette thought for a moment before it came to her. It was just like the leaf sticking exercise Iruka-sensei had them do in the Academy!

"Chakra," the Haruno blurted out, "You can use it to stick things to yourself."

"Actually," Kakashi-sensei said, "It's more of sticking yourself to things. How'd you know?"

Sakura blushed a bit, drawing an imaginary circle in the grass with her foot, "We had to stick leaves on our foreheads a few years ago," she explained, "It was so we could learn how to use the henge."

"And the kawarimi," Sasuke added.

"And the bunshin," Naruto said reluctantly.

"Ah," Kakashi-sensei said, starting to walk back down to the ground, "That. Anyways, chakra, in case you didn't know," that was pointed towards Naruto, who quickly glanced away, "Is a mixture of spiritual and physical energy that we use for ninjutsu."

"So," Sasuke said, "For this exercise, we just have to do what we had to do with the leaf, just with the tree."

Kakashi-sensei smiled, "If you want to stick the tree to your forehead, be my guest." Sakura giggled at that. Sasuke, on the other hand, frowned. "You've got the right idea, though," Kakashi-sensei said, "Think of it as…," he paused, thinking of a word, "Tape. Or glue."

Sakura nodded, "So you have to apply chakra to your feet," she summarized.

He nodded, "Yes. You can't apply to much, or you'll be repelled, but if you apply to little and you'll slip. To only stand on something, you have to have the perfect balance. To walk or run, you have to use a little less than a perfect blend, or else you won't move. Got it?"

Naruto nodded, "Yeah, 'ttebayo! I've got it."

"Good," Kakashi-sensei said, grabbing three kunai and throwing them at each of his student's feet, "Now, you try. Make a slash mark before you fall, that way you'll see your progress. And before you do anything, I want you to _walk_ up the trees. You'll have better control that way."

"What else can you do besides walk up trees with this jutsu?" Sasuke asked.

"Well, for one, you can walk up almost anything," Kakashi-sensei pointed out, "You can also walk up water, but you have to continuously adjust your chakra flow to compensate for the waves." He chuckled, "There was this one time my teammate walked on water in front of a few civilians. They bowed to him like he was Buddha."

Sakura sniggered at that, "That sounds funny."

Kakashi-sensei smiled wistfully, glancing over to the stone, "It was," he said, eyes misting over a bit. It was silent for a few seconds, before he cleared his throat, "Anyways, you guys should start."

"Alight!" Naruto yelled yanking the kunai in front of him out of the ground and rushing over to a tree, "I'll make it up in one shot, dattebayo!"

"I said to _walk_!" Kakashi-sensei snapped at him as he started to run up, only to slip a quarter of a meter up and fall on his butt. Sakura winced, Sasuke smirked, and Kakashi-sensei face-palmed, shaking his head at the kids antics. He didn't even have time to make a mark in the bark with his kunai he'd fallen so fats.

Sasuke pulled out his kunai next, walking over to the tree and pausing in front of it. The boy looked up into the foliage, sizing the tree up. He dipped his head back down and closed his eyes. Sakura assumed he was applying chakra to his feet, noticing that his eyebrows were drawing closer and closer together in concentration.

After a few seconds of watching him, she noticed that she was staring. Blushing, Sakura picked up her kunai and headed over to the tree in between Sasuke and Naruto. Unlike the other two, her trees first branch was relatively close to the ground, so if she needed to take a break on the way up, she'd be able to easily rest.

The boys would have to ether sit on the ground or keep going. Sakura placed her kunai in her mouth and held her hands up in front of her in the tiger hand seal. The pinkette took a breath and started to feel around for her chakra.

On her left, Naruto got two steps up the tree before he fell back down on his rump. "Dattebayo," he mumbled to himself, wiping his butt off and starting again.

' _He must have a lot of chakra to easily grab onto it,'_ Sakura thought to herself. She shook her head and closed her eyes again, telling herself that she needed to concentrate. Soon, she'd put her chakra into her hands and placed one of the tree, holding Kakashi-sensei's kunai with the other.

Sakura leaned back with all her weight and stumbled away from the tree a bit. "Okay," she muttered to herself, "I need more." She went through this process two more times before she got the right amount.

Stepping back, she applied the exact same amount of chakra to her feet and took a breath before stepping up onto the tree. She put her other foot on then tried to take another step, only to find she was stuck.

Kakashi-sensei's words from a bit earlier ran in her head, and she let the tiniest bit of the chakra run out before actually taking another step forward. She kept this up the entire time, making her way to the top branch.

Once she got there, she switched back to the perfect balance to steady herself. Grabbing onto the branch, she put her kunai in her mouth, then channeled the same amount of chakra into her palms before letting the energy on her feet go. Sakura swung onto the branch, sweaty and happy with herself.

Spitting the kunai into her palms, she threw it down to the bottom of her tree. "Done!" she called down, smiling. Naruto glanced up and gaped at her.

"Sakura-chan!" he yelled, "How'd you do that?!"

"I found balance like Kakashi-sensei said!" She replied. Over to the side, Sasuke scowled up at her and turned back to his tree. Sakura's face fell a bit. Was she being obnoxious? "It took me awhile, though," she added quickly, "It'll probably come to your guys soon."

It didn't. Sakura had already gotten out of her tree, which was way harder than getting up it, thank you very much, and was down on the ground, sitting cross-legged. Kakashi-sensei had told her about a chakra excursive where she had to change the levels of her chakra.

Her eyes snapped open, having been closed, when she heard yet another pop. Looking up, the pinkette found that Sasuke had used too much chakra, again. His tree was full of craters ranging in size, thought hey shrunk more and more the closer he got to the top.

Off to Sakura's other side, Naruto slipped from using too little chakra once more. The blond quickly slashed at his tree before falling back down to the ground. He wiped his brow and dashed up the trunk again, getting barely a centimeter closer to the top before he fell -sensei sighed pinching the bridge of his nose, "If he runs," the albino said, "Then he won't be learning control as much."

"He's getting up as far as Sasuke-san," Sakura pointed out.

"That's only because he's running," Kakashi-sensei explained, "If he walked, he'd barely be a meter to the top."

Sakura watched as the blond fell yet again, making another mark slightly above his previous one. The space between the slashes was getting thinner and thinner. "Is he reaching his limit?' Sakura asked.

Kakashi-sensei shook his head, "No, he's just only getting as far as he can before gravity takes a hold." The jonin turned to his student, "You tested your body weight and the amount of chakra you were using, right?"

Sakura nodded, "Yeah, so I knew how much I needed."

"The boys are using the same amount over and over," Kakashi-sensei said, motioning towards the girls teammates as both of them fell yet again, "They think they've already got the correct amount."

Sakura frowned, "But they don't," she said.

"Exactly."

"Should we tell them?" she asked.

Kakashi-sensei shook his head, "They need to figure it out for themselves," he reached over and scruffed the top of Sakura's head, which made her scowl, "You just have great chakra control."

"Really?" The sour expression she wore melted away as she looked to her sensei in amazement.

He nodded, "It's called a 'genjutsu type,'" he explained, before muttering the last part under his breath "Though the medics hate it when we call it that."

Sakura tilted her head to the side in confusion, "Why?"

"Because medical shinobi need precise chakra control," he said, "They find the fact that we shove people who could be medics off to study things that 'won't use their talents as well' revolting."

Sakura hummed at that, "There aren't many medic-nin's," she said, "are there?"

"Nope, there aren't. The kunoichi on my team was one," he said, "Rin. You saw her name on the stone." Sakura winced a bit at that. "During war, all kunochi's were taught medical ninjutsu."

"Why just the girls?"

"They have more delicate control naturally than men do," Kakashi-sensei said, "Something about the reproductive system, but I'm not going into that." Sakura silently thanked him for that. "It'd be good if you became a genjutsu specialist, though."

"Why?"

"Sasuke could use weapons, Naruto could use taijutsu, and you could use genjutsu. I'd do the ninjutsu, and we'd be perfect." He turned to Sakura and smiled a bit, "At least, that's what I want to say. Naruto seems to already lean to ninjutsu, he mastered the kage bunshin _and_ made a new technique."

Sakura blushed at the memory of the henge test barely a week ago.

"And Sasuke," Kakashi-sensei continued, "while he'd still be good with weapons, would be best for genjutsu because of his heritage. You'd be best for taijutsu."

Sakura frowned, "But then what would I do with my chakra control. What if I want to become a medic?" It wasn't that much of a lie for Sakura, after all, it was one of her choices.

Kakashi-sensei just chuckled, "I think I know what you can do," he said.

Sakura looked up at her sensei, "What?" she asked.

He smiled, "Have you ever heard of the Legendary Sannin?"

* * *

 **It's my birthday, so you have to give me extra reviews for it! Just kidding, you don't have to, but I would appreciate some. Wave Arc starts next chapter, so get ready! R &R! ~Koi**


	6. Departures and Demons: The Fight Begins

"No!" Naruto snapped, "No, no, no, no, NO!"

"Naruto," Sakura said hesitantly, putting a hand on his shoulder, "Calm down."

"I will not calm down, dattebayo!" he shouted, "We've been doing these stupid jobs for three weeks now!"

"Come on," Kakashi-sensei said, sighing, "It's not that bad."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow, "I thought you said that D-Ranks were worse than the devils' mother in law?"

The albino sweat-dropped, "R-Really?" he asked, looking around as if he could find some kind of excuse hanging somewhere, "When did I say that?

"Yesterday," Sakura deadpanned, moving her hair, which was hanging in her face, to the side so she could glare at him. Her sensei chuckled. Sakura shook her head and turned to Naruto.

"We've only just become genin," she said, "Of course we're going to do stuff like this. We'll be doing C-Ranks in a month or so, once we've gotten enough training from Kakashi-sensei."

"I still don't get why we have to do this," Naruto huffed out, crossing his arms in front of his chest and turning his nose up, "We're shinobi, 'ttebayo. We should be doing something cooler!"

"Like what?" Kakashi-sensei asked, whipping out his book. Sakura blew another stand of hair out of her face. Since she'd shifted, it'd fallen back down to where it used to be. Even if she could fight gravity, apparently her pastel pink locks couldn't.

"Like escorting a princess, dattebayo!" Naruto supplied, waving his arms around. Sakura and Sasuke bent away from his flailing limbs, not wanting to get hit. "Or fighting off samurai!"

"Stop moving your arms," Kakashi-sensei said, "You'll knock your teammates off the branch." Sakura sighed and bent upwards, grabbing onto the bark of the said limb and pulling herself up from where she as hanging upside down.

"Time," she asked, wiping some sweat off her brow.

"Seven minutes exactly," Kakashi-sensei said, not even looking up from his book.

"A full minute more," Sasuke added, "Your preserves are growing fast."

Sakura blushed, turning her head away from him so he couldn't see, "I've been meditating."

"I seriously don't get how you can do that, 'ttebayo," Naruto said, crossing his arms behind his head.

"And I don't get how you can hang there for a half an hour," Sakura added, applying chakra to her feet before walking down the trunk of the tree, "But you do it," she called back up. From beside Naruto, Sasuke smirked a bit.

"Can I do some kata's?" she asked Kakashi-sensei, who peered at her over the top of his book.

"Still got the chakra mark from yesterday?" he asked. The mark he'd applied to them a few weeks ago only lasted seven days, so he renewed them every Tuesday for the kids.

Sakura nodded and pulled out her scroll. He'd also gotten each of them their own feedback scroll, the ones that told them what exercises they needed to do.

Her face screwed up when she read the words. "Push-ups and pull-ups," she said reluctantly.

"Give me a hundred pull-ups," Kakashi-sensei said. Sakura groaned but did what he said, climbing back up the tree and grabbing onto the branch below Naruto and Sasuke's, which was so close to the two boys heads that the tips of their hair were only a few centimeters away.

While Kakashi-sensei was true about his training regimen – Tuesdays and Thursdays kata's, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Mondays on different kind of jutsu's and chakra control – when you had free time in between practices, most of the time because of the lack of chakra, you practiced conditioning or other things.

Though, this meant that Naruto didn't have nearly enough conditioning time as Sakura or Sasuke did, seeing as he seemed to have an _almost endless amount of chakra_.

"Well, well, well," Naruto said in a deeper voice than normal, sending Sakura a foxy grin, "Seems like we meet again, dattebayo."

Sasuke turned to stare at him, "Are you on something?" he asked bluntly. Sakura choked on her spit, her grip faltering. Naruto, on the other hand, nearly lost his concentration and almost fell out of the tree.

"No, 'ttebayo," he said, screwing his nose up in disgust, "I am not 'on something,' dattebayo. Are you?"

Sakura chuckled and lowered herself so she was hanging onto the branch by her arms. "What are you doing?" Sasuke asked, ignoring Naruto as he tilted his head to get a better look at his female teammate.

Sakura grunted and pulled her body up so her head was above the branch. Holding herself there, she looked up to answer his question, "Pull…ups," she said, lagging on the last of the word as she noticed just how close the was to Sasuke.

Their noses were less than a centimeter apart and she was eye to eye with his deep, dark orbs. "Oh," he said, cheeks taking on the slightest, slightest color.

"Yeah," Sakura replied, finding herself getting lost in his clans distinctive feature. The Uchiha was simply staring at Sakura's irises, wondering how something as organic as her eyes could resemble a gem so much. Sakura blinked and found herself again.

Her face heated up quicker than she ever thought it would and the Haruno quickly let the pull up go, muttering a quick 'one,' as she hung in mid-air. _'That did_ not _just happen,'_ she thought to herself, her heart nearly beating out of her chest.

"Time," Sasuke muttered, leaning upwards and _away from Sakura_ as he pulled himself up.

"Nine minutes and forty-three seconds," Kakashi-sensei drawled, "That's thirteen seconds less than yesterday. What happened?"

"I was practicing ninjutsu last night," Sasuke explained, walking down the trunk.

"That's weird," Kakashi-sensei said, "Your chakra would have re-filled overnight."

"I was up late," the Uchiha said.

"Okay. What does your scroll say?"

"Pull-ups and crunches."

"Do pull-ups with Sakura, then." _'I hate that man,'_ Sakura thought, blushing even harder as Sasuke swung onto the branch, his hands close enough to hers to make her heart start pounding, again. The pinkette prayed to Kami that he wouldn't hear it.

Sasuke did one pull-up, before turning to her, "Aren't you going to do them?" he asked.

Sakura nodded and puled herself up again, this time coming face to face with Naruto. "Hi, 'ttebayo," he said, waggling his eyebrows.

Sakura scowled, "Hi," she said, dropping back down in sync with Sasuke. They finished up their one hundred pull-ups just as Naruto was reaching his fifteen minute mark. Sasuke let go of the branch, earning a gasp from Sakura and a shouted from Naruto.

He landed on the branch below them, one much closer to the ground, and smirked up, "Did I scare you?"

"No!" Naruto shouted, just as Sakura breathed out a shaky 'yes.' The Uchiha rolled his eyes and jumped down to the ground. Sakura took the safer route and walked down the trunk. Naruto pulled himself up and attempted to copy Sasuke. He missed the branch, though, and fell down onto the early, his leg comically twitching.

Sakura leaned over the Naruto shaped hole in the ground, raising an eyebrow, "Really?" The Uzumaki stuck his butt up in the air and shook it around, placing his hands next to his ears and pushing until his head came out of the ground with a loud 'pop!'

"You really are something else," Kakashi-sensei muttered, "Okay, guys," Sakura raised an eyebrow, "And girl." He looked to the blond that was shaking the dirt out of his hair, "…And Naruto," he added, earning a shout from the boy that he was in fact a male.

"Give me a lap around the village," Kakashi-sensei said, "With your levels low, the running should help your entire body." Sakura, Sasuke, and Naruto nodded and were about to take off when he held up a hand, "Report to the Hokage tower when you're done," he smiled a bit, "I think you've all earned a C-Rank."

Naruto's enthusiastic yells were said to be heard all the way in Kumo that day.

* * *

"What's this? A midget, a flamingo, and some brooding kid?"

"Flamingo?" Sakura muttered, eyes growing wide.

"Brooding kid?" Sasuke said darkly.

Naruto laughed, "Ha-ha," he said, "Who's the midget, dattebayo?"" Sakura and Sasuke turned to look at him. A second or two passed as the information sunk in. "I'mma kill him!" the blond yelled, only to be held back by Kakashi-sensei.

"Not if I get to him first," Sakura said, "I'll bake him into a cake."

"And I'll feed it to Tora," Sasuke finished up, glaring at the man who'd insulted all three genin in a single sentence."

The Hokage sighed and took a drag from his pipe, "This," he said, blowing smoke out of the corner of his mouth, "Is Tazuna. He's your client."

"Nice to meet you," Kakashi-sensei chirped, having grabbed a hold of Sasuke's collar to pull the kid away from the drunk. Sakura fade a few scary motions with her hands, her eyes gleaming like an eagles. Naruto hissed, his hair standing up like a cats.

Tazuna gulped and took a step back.

* * *

"Here," Kakashi-sensei said the next morning, handing each of the kids a pocket watch, "Since this is your first 'real mission,'" Tazuna choked on his spit at that, "I want you to have these."

Each of them was silver and had symbols and a tiny gem on them. One was a cherry blossom branch with a single emerald jewel hanging with it on the chain. Another had a weird swirl and a sapphire, and the third had what looked like an uchiwa fan with an onyx. She'd seen them somewhere before, though.

Sakura glanced over Sasuke and Naruto's shoulders and noticed the crest on the back of their shirts, before turning back to the pocket watches. So they were each customized. "This is for Sakura," Kakashi-sensei said, pointing to the one with the emerald, "And this is for Naruto," the sapphire, "And Sasuke," the onyx.

Sakura scrunched her eyebrows together in confusion but grabbed hers. Naruto snatched his up quickly, whistling as he dangled it from his chain and held it up to the sun. Sasuke took his as well, hitting the button on top. He smirked as he looked at the contents.

"I see," the Uchiha said, "It's so we can identify ourselves in case there's an imposter."

"Really, 'ttebayo?" Naruto asked.

Kakashi-nodded, "It's an old trick. Though I added my own touch." Sakura quickly flicked her pocket watch open and smiled. Where the clock was supposed to be was a picture of the team.

Kakashi-sensei had his elbows resting on Naruto and Sasuke's heads, with his fingers laced together on top of Sakura's. The pinkette stood in the middle of her two teammates, holding their hands and raising them up so they were more visible.

Naruto and Sasuke were glaring at each other, though Naruto was grinning through his and Sasuke was giving an amused smirk. Sakura's eyes were closed and she had a pleasant smile on her face. It was taken the fifth day after their graduation, and there'd been a lot of bickering beforehand. A _lot_ of bickering that included all three kids and their sensei.

The poor photographer had looked like he'd blown a gasket.

"An enemy will assume you'll only have weapons in your pouch," Kakashi-sensei said, breaking Sakura from the memory, "So keep it in there. If your formation is ever broken, ask for the pocket watch. If they have it, check the picture."

"That's pretty cool," Tazuna interrupted, "But you won't need them for this. It's just an escort mission."

Kakashi-sensei nodded, "I know, Tazuna-san, this is just something I wish to introduce to my team. I'm sorry for taking the time for it." The man scowled but stayed silent. "Does everyone understand how this system works?" Kakashi-sensei asked.

Sasuke, Sakura, and Naruto all nodded, and their sense clapped his hands, "Okay, put them in your pouches and we'll get going!" The students followed his words and put the pocket watches away in their holsters.

Team seven started off from Konoha, heading straight towards the forest's path. It was strangely quite. Sakura was only used to the kind of silence she was hearing when she woke up early in the morning, but it was eight, and most civilians were up. Not like she could hear them, though.

"So, Sakura-chan," Naruto said, trying to spark up conversation, "Why are you wearing your forehead protector on your skirt, 'ttebayo?"

"Oh," Sakura blushed a bit, scratching the back of her head, "My foreheads too big for it." Tazuna snorted and was sent a glare by the rest of the team. Sakura lowered her head a bit more and started to speak a little quitter.

"I have Ino's ribbon in my hair to hold it back," she said, "And I can't keep it around my neck, it'll restrict my heads movement."

Naruto raised an eyebrow, "But doesn't Hinata-chan wear hers that way."

"She has the Byakugan," Sakura said quickly, glancing at Tazuna.

"What's that, dattebayo?"

Sakura looked to Kakashi-sensei and he smiled, "Wave doesn't have any ninja," he said, "You can explain."

Sakura nodded, "It's a dojutsu of the Hyuga clan, she can see all around her with it." Naruto made a face but moved his head up and down to show that he understood.

"Is this Hinata-san where you learned Juken from?" Kakashi-sensei asked suddenly.

Sasuke whipped his head towards her, "You know the Hyuga fighting style."

Sakura shook her head frantically, "No," she said, "I mean, I only know a few stances, and I use fists instead of open palms. I can't learn that much because it's against clan rules. Hiashi-sama doesn't even know I know and Hinata will get in big trouble if he finds out."

Kakashi-sensei chuckled while Sasuke scowled. "Is it that bad?" Tazuna asked suddenly, "To know another clans fighting style and all?"

"What do you mean another?" Sasuke asked at the same time Kakashi-sensei gave a brief explanation of why clans were so secretive about their jutsu's and kata's and such. Tazuna nodded as he absorbed the information, before turning to Sasuke.

"Have you not heard of the Haruno's?" he asked. Sakura lowered her head and blushed. "They were a fearsome clan," he continued, 'came from Kiri. Were driven out cause of the 'cleansing,' though."

Kakashi-sensei raised an eyebrow, "You have a Kekkai Genkai?"

Sakura shook her head, "No," she said, "Haruno's just have exceptional chakra control," she explained, "Most people have limits to their control, but we don't."

"Wow!" Naruto said, "You're dad's awesome, dattebayo!"

"Actually," Sakura said, "My grandmother was barren so my father was adopted. My mom's the Haruno; he just took on her last name because he never had one. The controlthings genetic, though, and since she didn't have it, I don't have it." The 'trust me, I've tried,' part was unsaid.

Kakashi-sensei clamped Sakura on the back, "Looks like we have a pretty good kunoichi on our team."

Sakura blushed. Sasuke glanced over to her, making her face heat up even more. "Watch out for the puddle, Sakura-chan," Naruto said, getting ready to jump over to small pool of water. Suddenly, faster than her eyes could move, Kakashi-sensei was wrapped in chains and torn apart.

"One down," the two figures' growled lowly before letting of a couple of dark laughs.

Sakura's breath caught in her throat for half a second. Then, she was barking out: "Naruto! Guard Tazuna!" The Uzumaki dashed backwards, pulling out a kunai and yelled 'Kage Bunshin,' making three clones to guard their client on all sides.

Sakura had seen those before in training. They could actually touch things. Each clone pulled out kunai and some shuriken. Sasuke leapt forward and kicked one of the figures in the chest. It stumbled back and threw a chain towards the boy.

He jumped over it, yanking down and throwing it towards one of the trees. He chucked a shuriken and one of its points smacked through a link, holding it to the bark. He threw a kunai and it stabbed itself through the hole in the shuriken, holding the man's weapon there.

The Uchiha raced forward as the figure tried to pull itself free. Sasuke wound his arm back and punched what Sakura now recognized as a man in the nose. His head lolled forward, signaling he was knocked out.

Something hit Sakura in the side and she gasped, realizing she'd forgotten about the second one. Naruto and Sasuke called out her name in panic, and the pinkette came to her senses. She dropped into a Hyuga stance, sending two quick punches to the second man's kidneys.

The first one hit but the second was caught. Sakura grit her teeth and fell into her Blossom defensive stand; the first kata she'd learned for the style. She man was pushed back as she lunged forward, pushing her elbow out on instinct.

His grip loosened at sudden twisting force, and Sakura yanked her arm free before dropping to the ground and swiped the man's feet out from under him. She popped up and tried to drop kick him in the head, only for him to roll around her foot and get to his feet, rushing for Tazuna.

The original Naruto, the one guarding the front of the teams' client, threw his kunai and some shuriken. The man dodged them and bent down, ready to strike Naruto, only for the blond to lash out and kick him in the stomach.

The clones on Naruto's side barreled into him, holding him down as he thrashed around. "Sakura-chan!" All three yelled, and the said girl ran forwards, grabbing a kunai and burying it to the hilt into the man's back.

He went ridged and collapsed. Sakura breathed heavily and bent down, trying to grab his weapon and pull it off. As quickly as the he'd appeared, the man lashed out, grabbing her by the throat and hosting her up.

Sakura gagged, thrashing around. Naruto and his clones charged, but were all thrown back when the first man, who'd Sasuke thought he'd knocked out, freed himself from his weapon, throwing a barrage of kunai at the boys, and punched Sasuke in the jaw

The Uchiha fell to the ground, spitting out some blood before flipping up and sending a high kick to his head. The man guarded, but didn't realize that Sasuke had made some hand seals. The man let go of the boy's foot, but it was too late.

Sasuke sent his Katon jutsu flying, and the man was engulfed in flames. The one holding Sakura up squeezed her neck harder. Sakura made a gurgling sound, getting Sasuke's attention. "Crap," he whispered, racing towards her, only for the man to squeeze even tighter.

"Don't move," he said, "Or she dies." Sasuke stopped and watched as Sakura whacked at the man's arm, foam starting to form at her mouth. He glared daggers at the man, gritting his teeth.

Naruto left his remaining clone with Tazuna, who was watching everything in a frozen terror, and charged the man from behind again. He tackled him and Sakura was freed. She fell to the ground, hacking and coughing as she finally sucked in some air.

The man threw Naruto off and charged. Sasuke ran, but was two slow, and Sakura tried to desperately grab the man's ankle, but was only a tenth of a centimeter off since he was moving.

Kakashi-sensei then chose it was the perfect time to appear, grabbing the man by the back of his shirt and throwing him into a tree so hard he was knocked out. "Yo," he said, raising a hand. The only thing that could be heard was labored breaths and the sound of Naruto's final clone dispelling in its signature 'poof.'

Sasuke turned to what team seven and Tazuna had all though were Kakashi-sensei's remains and held up a hand. "Kai," he said softly, and the genjutsu disappeared, revealing pieces of a log.

"Kawarimi," Naruto whispered, before falling onto his back, "Holy shit." He put a hand over his heart to feel his pulse, "Holy shit, dattebayo," he said, louder this time.

"Why'd you put a genjutsu on the log, sensei?" Sakura asked, getting to her feet and brushing her legs free of dirt. She looked around to find the puddle was gone. So that had been their henge.

"I wanted them to think I was dead," he explained, as if it was the easiest thing in the world, "And you handles them," he looked over to the first man, who was charred like a bad barbecue, and the second man, Sakura's kunai still embedded in his back.

The jonin walked over and pulled the weapon out, wiping it off and throwing it at Sakura's feet. She slowly picked it up and put it back, careful not to scratch her pocket watch. "And when you were in trouble," he continued, "I helped."

"We noticed," Sasuke growled, motioning to the man he'd throw into the tree.

Kakashi-sensei chuckled, "Are any of you hurt?" he asked.

Sakura rubbed her neck, "No," she said, "But my dad's going to flip when he sees a hand shaped bruise on my neck."

"We'll get you to a medical nin before he does," Kakashi-sensei said. Sakura nodded in thanks. Naruto, Sasuke, how about you?"

"I'm fine," Sasuke said. Naruto shrugged, muttering a 'could be better, 'ttebayo.'

"Good," Kakashi-sensei said, "Collect your weapons and I'll tie these tow up," he motioned to the two men, before glaring at Tazuna. Sakura even felt him release a bit of killing intent, "And then we'll talk with Tazuna-san about why my cute little genin were attacked on a _simple_ , _C-Rank escort mission_."

* * *

 **In case you didn't notice, the Demon Brothers weapon was not connected for this fanfic. I wanted all three of the kids the be able to show off their abilities. Also, this fic is't going to hug cannon like others do. Expect changes. The entire reason I thought of this idea was because I wanted things to be different. Anyways, R &R! ~Koi**


	7. Nami no Kuni: Momochi Zabuza Appears

**Do you have any idea how many times I typed Kakuzu instead of Zabuza? Any idea?! I have no fuckin' clue how it happened, but it just did. The summers turning my brain to mush, I say. Anyways, enjoy and review. ~Koi**

* * *

Following the events of the Demon Brothers, as Naruto had found out when Kakashi-sensei threw him the bingo book and told him to find out who they were, Team Seven found themselves in a _bit_ of a pinch.

For one, they were all shaken, seeing as not even a half an hour into their first mission out of the village they were attacked. There was also the fact that Sakura had been pretty close to death.

Not to mention Sasuke was also down on chakra, having made sure his fireball was extra hot and concentrated so it would burn his opponent to a flaky crisp.

So, as soon as the kids had rounded up all their weapons and the Demon Brothers had been tied up – and kicked in the head by Naruto a few times for good measure– Kakashi-sensei had whirled on Tazuna, his presence seeming to completely dwarf the poor man.

"I believe," the kid's sensei said lowly, "That we deserve an explanation."

Tazuna whimpered a bit, "I have no idea who they were," he said.

Kakashi-sensei just stared at him, "I'm pretty sure even Naruto knew you were lying," he deadpanned. Sasuke smirked a bit at that. "They weren't bandits, they were ninja. And they were after you. Now start talking before I take my team and march them back to Konoha."

It was quite for a long time before Tazuna finally spoke. "Have you heard of Gato?" he asked.

"He's a businessman," Sasuke said.

"Gato Company," Sakura added.

"He," Tazuna sucked in a breath, "HehastakenoverWave!"

"What?" Sakura asked, "I didn't quite get that, you talked too fast."

"Gato's taken over Wave! He's like our dictator now!"

Sasuke blinked, "You mean to say," he said, "That a stubby, useless _civilian_ took over an entire village?"

"Yes," Tazuna squeaked out.

"I highly doubt that," Sakura said, crossing her arms, "We'd have heard. News in the trade and business world travels fast."

"We're cut off!" Tazuna shouted, throwing his hands up in the air, "And he'd kill us if we told!"

Kakashi-sensei threw himself forward and grabbed onto Tazuna, pulling the man to the ground. There was a loud whoosh, and soon, a gigantic sword lodged itself into a tree. The genin were lucky they were short enough or their heads would have been lobbed off.

Naruto gulped and put a hand to his throat while Sasuke sucked in a breath and readied himself. Sakura felt a cold sweat collect on the back of her neck. A man popped into place, standing on the sharp, oversized blade.

"A question," he said, squatting down. Tazuna scrambled behind Sakura, Naruto, and Sasuke, while Kakashi-sensei leapt to his feet and stood protectively in front of his students, "How do you want to pass on?"

Surprisingly, it was Sasuke who spoke up: "As an old man with my ambitions accomplished. Now leave."

The man chuckled, "I like this one, you remind me of a certain boy. Such a strong will." He narrowed his eyes, "Too bad you have to _die_!" He flipped forward, yanking his sword out of the tree's trunk and swiping it at Sasuke.

The Uchiha ducked, but got at _least_ a centimeter cut off from the tips of his hair. The man slashed the sword downwards, and Sasuke rolled around it, gritting his teeth. He pulled out a kunai and slashed at the man's stomach. His opponents arm was suddenly a blur, his hand grabbing the boy's wrist from the ground and hoisting him up.

"Ragdoll," the man sneered, before chucking Sasuke away from him. Sakura gasped and grabbed his arm as he sailed past, tugging him into her.

The dark haired boy fell on top of her, wincing. He pushed himself up quickly and grabbed her, hoisting her to her feet. "Thanks," he mumbled. Sakura blushed and nodded, running forward to guard Tazuna.

"Naruto," she barked. He got the message and made five clones. Soon, two bodies were guarding Tazuna on all sides.

"Well, aren't you smart for your age," the man said. Even though his mouth was covered by bandages, Sakura could tell he was grinning from ear to ear. "You trained her well, Kakashi."

"Zabuza," Kakashi-sensei said, "Go home."

"I'm not drunk, you old fart," the man, now dubbed as Zabuza, growled, before hoisting up his sword, "Kubikiribochi would love your head."

"One," Kakashi-sensei drawled, reaching up and grasping onto his forehead protector, "I'm twenty-six. Two, I don't think I _want_ it to have my head." He yanked the marital he'd grabbed a hold of up and his left eye snapped open, revealing a red iris.

"Sharingan!" he shouted, before rushing forward to engage in battle with Zabuza.

Sakura gasped, "What is _that_?" she asked.

"Sharingan," Sasuke whispered, "My clan's dojutsu."

Naruto's face scrunched up, "Why does he have it, dattebayo?"

"No idea," the Uchiha growled out. Sakura eyed him but stayed silent. All three genin's eyes kept darting from left to right in an attempt to follow their sensei's fight. Zabuza would lash out with his oversized sword and Kakashi-sensei would parry with his kunai, pushing the blade away.

Sakura watched as Kakashi-sensei dodged another swipe, and threw a kunai at Zabuza before grabbing another and blocking a third strike. She bent down a bit more, finding that the kunai in her own hand felt abnormally…normal.

Zabuza shifted a bit, and in the blink of an eye, he was in front her and one of Naruto's clones. Sasuke and the real Naruto didn't even seem to notice. She glanced to the side and noticed the other clones were still facing in their forward positions.

And Kakashi-sensei was still fighting another Zabuza. Her eyes went wide, so he knew the same technique as Naruto did!

"Hey-o, bookworm," Zabuza greeted in a whisper so quite Sakura had to strain her ears to even make out his words, "Feeling ready to die?" Kakashi-sensei whirled around and swore, speeding towards his team.

What Sakura had thought to be the original Zabuza turned into water and sloshed to the ground. Sakura's head titled upwards as she stared into his eyes. She was immediately rooted to the spot, shaky like Tora when angry.

Only she wasn't mad, she was terrified. Zabuza raised his sword, and Sakura knew her sensei _wouldn't_ get to her in time.

"Sakura!" Kakashi-sensei yelled, "Naruto!" Now that was what got Sasuke and the others clones attention.

"Holy shit!" "Son of a bitch!" "Dattebayo!" All the clones cried out, nearly jumping out of their skin. Sasuke settled for the simple "crap!" and whirled around, grabbing another kunai from his pouch.

Zabuza grinned so wide Sakura thought the bandages covering his mouth and jaw would rip. He swiped Kubikiribochi at her and the clone. The clone shoved her to the side, taking the blow and disappearing into spoke.

The real Naruto collapsed with a cry of pain, holding his chest where his clone had been it. "Shit," he breathed out, his breaths going ragged. Zabuza rolled his eyes and kicked Sakura hard in the stomach. She gasped, spittle flying from her mouth as she soared through the air and slammed into a tree with a loud crack.

The bark, most of which had split under her, slipped down to the ground with limp body. The poor pinkette saw spots. "That's why Kage Bunshin is the weakest of physical clones," Zabuza sneered out, turning to Naruto.

Kakashi-sensei appeared, his hands flying through seals faster than Sakura could process, though it could have been average speed, her head was just a bit messed up since she been thrown into a _tree_.

The albino cried out the name of a jutsu ("Doton: Doryūheki!") and slammed his hands into the ground. A wall of earth rose to cover the rest of the genin. Zabuza sighed and swiped Kubikiribochi through it, cutting the solid piece of rock in half.

The top part toppled backwards. Sasuke grabbed Naruto and yanked him back, the blond's clones copying the movement with Tazuna.

"Unlike clones made of the elements," Zabuza said, starting off from where he'd been interrupted earlier, "They are copies of your chakra and your mind, however small it is. You gain the Kage Bunshin's memories."

"We'll remember that," the clones chorused, before all of them threw kunai at him. Zabuza sliced through them and dodged a punch from Kakashi. Her sensei threw more and more jutsu's at him, and Sakura found that their taijutsu looked like simple dancing.

Sakura winced and tried to get up, only to find that her head felt like it was filled to the brim with water. She groaned and collapsed back to the ground. She'd feel better soon, she knew it, she just had to close her eyes…

* * *

" _Ne, ne, Kaa-san," I said, stretching out my hands towards the sky, "What do clouds feel like?"_

" _Hmm," Kaa-san said, putting a hand to her chin and looking down at me, "Whatever you want them to feel like, darling."_

 _I huffed and stuck out my lower lip in a pout. Ino had taught me the face, and it was kind of fun to make, though Tou-san hated it. "That's no fun," I said, "What if I thought they were rough, like rocks."_

" _Rocks can be smooth," Kaa-san said._

" _They're hard, though," I replied, "Clouds have to be fluffy. I mean, they're made of soft and sweet stuff, right?"_

 _Kaa-san nodded and bent down, kissing me on the forehead, "You're right, my little blossom. They're soft and warm, like a fuzzy blanket fresh out of the dryer._

* * *

 _The next day, I told the older kids on the playground what Kaa-san had said. They made mean faces and told me clouds were made of water, and that they felt wet and cold and heavy, like your clothes after you get caught in the rain._

" _Idiot," Ami said, laughing, "Grow up. There's no such thing as something that's warm and comforting in the real world! Your forehead's just for show!" She reached forward and shoved me into the sandbox. The other kids cheered and ran over, yelling about how I was stupid and couldn't do anything._

 _I curled up into a ball and covered my head with my arms. More and more insults poured from their mouths. "Retard!" "Fatso!" "Shorty!" "Big forehead!" "Cherry hair!" When the words stopped, they were replaced by kicks and spit._

 _Finally, they shoved sand over me until all I could see was the darkness._

* * *

When viridian eyes opened sluggishly, their owner found herself being held up my something warm. Something tickled her nose a bit and she drew back a bit. "Mm," Sakura mumbled, burying her face into the softness. She found that whatever was holding her was much for comfortable than walking.

"Sakura-chan!" she heard Naruto exclaim, "You're awake!"

"No," Sakura groaned, nuzzling closer to the thing that was carrying her. It warmed up a few degrees, and she heard Kakashi-sensei and Tazuna chuckle, "I'm asleep." Then, realization dawned on her. If Naruto wasn't holding her, and Kakashi-sensei or Tazuna weren't holding her, then…

She opened her eyes to find dark black hair and the collar of a navy shirt way too close to be comfortable anymore. "Shit!" she exclaimed, pushing away from the boys back and flailing her arms around.

Naruto snorted, Kakashi-sensei smiled, and Tazuna giggled. Sasuke grumbled out a few colorful words as Sakura pulled him backwards. "Calm down," he hissed, "I'll let you go."

"Then do it!" Sakura shrieked, her face turning an even deeper shade of scarlet when she realized he was holding the back of her mother-fucking _thighs_ in order to piggy back her.

"I can't if you're moving around," Sasuke growled. Sakura didn't stop fidgeting and continued to wave her arms around and try to push herself away from the Uchiha. Finally, she pushed too hard and fell towards the ground, Sasuke followed behind her with more than a few curses.

Sakura blushed and scrambled to her feet, edging as far away from Sasuke as she could without stepping off the path, Sasuke, on the other hand, stood his ground. His arms were crossed and he was glaring daggers right at Sakura, who was fighting down her blush as best as she could.

If Ino found out, their friendship would be over. Sakura could not have that happen, she just couldn't. If Ino left, then Hinata would leave. After all, the Hyuga needed someone strong to support her as a friend. Sakura being carried by Sasuke would make Ino jealous, and jealousy ruins friendships.

As Sakura ran through different scenarios of her best friends leaving her, she found that everyone had stopped walking and was facing her.

Tazuna was turning red in order to keep his laughs in. Naruto, on the other hand, was cackling like a hyena as he rolled around the ground, smacking his hand against the earth. Kakashi-sensei had even put his book down and was watching them with more than a little amusement.

And Sasuke, oh he looked positively livid!

Sakura bit her bottom lip and turned her entire head down to the ground, drawing cherry blossoms in the dirt with her foot.

The rest of the team had quickly found out through the few weeks they spent together that Sakura easily got embarrassed, and if she found eyes on her, she'd immediately go into her 'frightened turtle mode,' as Naruto had dubbed it.

The said boy grinned in attempt to cheer her up and started to spout stuff off about how she made Sasuke look like an idiot. The Uchiha's scowl deepened even further at that. When Naruto tried to sling an arm over Sakura shoulder to comfort her, she shrieked and flinched away, batting the limb off her.

"No more touching!" she yelled, whipping around with bright red face to point at Tazuna, then to Kakashi-sensei. "Especially you two," she added, shoving her finger in front of Naruto's chest while she extended her other arm to point at Sasuke.

"Stay at least a meter away at all times!" the pinkette snapped, before scuttling down the path like a frightened crab.

Kakashi-sensei sighed and rubbed his face, "This is why I don't like dealing with young kunoichi," he said, walking after her. The remaining members of team seven shared a nasty look and guarded him. "They get offended so easily."

Tazuna shrugged and followed after the three, wedging himself between Naruto and Sasuke (he didn't want to be left in the back unguarded), "You can never figure out girls," he added.

"Slow down," Kakashi-sensei yelled after Sakura, and she stopped, turning back. She started to walk again, but at a slower pace than before.

She wasn't freaking out because she was a 'young kunoichi' – yes, she'd heard them – or because she was a girl. No, she was freaking out because her best friends crushes had become intimate with her. In no way, shape or form, could that happen, or else…images of an enraged looking Ino and a betrayed Hinata popped up in her mind.

"Gah!" Sakura screamed, surprising all of the boys behind her, and tugging at her hair.

"Maybe she's on her, you know," Naruto whispered loudly to Kakashi-sensei, who face-palmed. Tazuna sighed in defeat and pinched the bridge of his nose, shaking his head. The edges of Sasuke's ears went pink.

Sakura whirled around, absolutely pissed, "No," she hissed, her hair seeming to float around her, "I'm not on my you know." She stormed off, muttering things about baking obnoxious blonds into cakes and serving them to Tora.

* * *

When team seven got to Tazuna's house, they were greeted by the site of a worrying woman, who they soon found out to be Tsunami, Tazuna's daughter. "Tou-san!" she'd yelled, hurrying over to where he was. As soon as she had laid eyes on Sakura and her teammates, she gasped.

"Come with me," she said, grabbing a hold of the two boys arms, "I'll patch you up!"

Sasuke stepped forward, "I'm fine," he replied, "Ad so is the dobe. Kakashi and… Haruno are the ones that need help."

Sakura scoffed, though on the inside she was doing a little tap dance. Sasuke had called her Haruno! That was a _total_ step back from piggy-backing her! Shannaroo! This was _perfect_ (Insert evil cackling here)!

"I'm fine," Sakura said, keeping up her calm façade, "Just a little tired. Kakashi-sensei needs the attention the most." Tsunami-san looked up to the albino man and raised an eyebrow. "Chakra exhaustion," Sakura explained quickly, "He just got out of a fight with an A-Rank criminal."

"Tou-san!" Tsunami-san yelped, "You said it'd only be a B-Rank mission for them!"

"He only paid for C-Rank, 'ttebayo," Naruto muttered.

Tsunami-san let out an exasperated sigh. "Come," she said, "I'll help you all." She shot a look towards her father, "But you will hear about this." She proceeded to drag the kids to what seemed to be the living room.

* * *

Tsunami-san wrapped one of Sasuke's arms and Sakura's head and thrown a few patches on Naruto's cheeks. Kakashi-sensei got the worst of it, having to get his leg patched up. Tsunami-san even had to fish around the back closet for a crutch for him to use.

Naruto was sniggering the entire time. Sakura had heard about what happened with him and Sasuke fighting Zabuza. From what she'd learned, Naruto had taken the brute of everything, though Sasuke was hurt more than him.

She frowned and tried to get up, she wanted to help with dinner to only to find Tsunami-san glaring at her, "You will be lying down for the rest of the day, young lady." Sakura scowled but lay back, grabbing the blanket Naruto was using and wrapping herself up in it.

"Hey, dattebayo!" Naruto protested, "I was using that!"

"It's mine, now," she snapped, and tugged the material over her head. She heard Tsunami-san sigh, and footsteps signaled that she'd left.

"Naruto," Kakashi-sensei said, "Come with me, I'll be teaching you stuff about the Kage Bunshin. Sasuke, stay with Sakura." Sakura heard more footsteps as the blond ran out to the yard.

"Why?" he asked. The bluntness of his words seemed to pierce right through Sakura's heart. She scowled. Sure, she was trying to stay away from the Uchiha and get him to date her best friend, but he had no reason to be so mean to her! Really, there was no reason…

Okay, maybe.

"You could always teach it to me, too," Sasuke continued.

"Can't," Kakashi-sensei said, "You don't have the chakra. The Kage Bunshin distributes charka evenly to each clone. You have to have lots of it do be able to do just one. You don't have the reserves." Sasuke grunted at that put stayed silent.

Kakashi-sensei soon left, and Sasuke and Sakura were alone. The awkwardness was only tolerable because she had the blanket around her, and even then, it was hard for heard to breath. "Are you asleep?" Sasuke asked after more than a few minutes had passed.

Sakura stayed silent. "You're a handful, you know," he said. "After all the years I've known you, you act like a total stranger. All you've done is ask me about Yamanaka, I seriously don't get it." He paused, "You're heavy, too."

Sakura threw her blanket off and stared a shocked Sasuke straight in the eyes, "I," she said, "Am in no way _heavy_." She practically spat out the last word.

He blinked, then smirked, "You kind of are." She grabbed a pillow and hit him over the head with it. "Ow! What was that for?"

"Calling me fat," Sakura huffed.

Sasuke rolled his eyes, "Muscles are heavier than fat." Sakura looked him in the eye and sighed, lying back down and pulling the blanket over her again. Silence passed again, and when the girl looked back, she found Sasuke staring at her.

"Ready to talk?" he asked.

"No," she whispered, closing her eyes. Outside, you could hear Naruto's voice and the sound of his clones popping. The noise was faint, but it was enough to keep her from going crazy. After a while, Sakura finally decided to speak again.

"You're not supposed to be like this," she said. She glanced at Sasuke, only to find him frowning. "You're supposed to be the kid in the back that never talks, the one all the girls admire."

"The one that almost all the girls admire," he corrected, his tone soft, "You never did."

"Hinata didn't ether," Sakura muttered. More silence filled the room. She pulled the blanket over her head, "I'm going to sleep."

"Hn."

* * *

When Sakura woke up, it was to the sound of crickets and wind. She sat up, the blanket she'd stolen from Naruto pooling in her lap. The pinkette turned to face the window, expecting to find sunlight pouring through it.

Instead, she found the moon peering down at her. Sakura let out a soft sigh and looked around. Sasuke was sitting in the corner, an arm resting on his knee. Kakashi-sensei was facing the wall, his crutch next to him. Naruto was on the ground, spooning his pillow and snoring loudly.

Sakura wondered how she stayed asleep. Getting up, she grabbed her holster and her blanket, throwing the latter over Sasuke's form before creeping out the door. She took a seat on the backyard and pulled out a kunai.

"Best to learn from experience," she sighed out, before setting the blade against her wrist and pressing hard enough to draw blood. Sakura winced and dragged the kunai across her skin until she had a clean cut across her arm.

She let out a sigh and took a shaky breath, wiping the blood off on the weapon. Sakura channeled chakra into her free hand and focused on filtering the yin chakra out. Slowly, slowly, her chakra flickered green.

She was sweating at this point, it'd taken ten minutes to filter it all, and her cut had already scabbed over. Sakura placed the hand with her medical chakra over the wound and imagine her skin sealing together.

There was a slight tingling, so she kept her palm there until it passed. Sakura pulled her hand away and frowned, staring right at her scab, "Maybe it only works with fresh wounds," she said. Her chakra sputtered out and the pinkette reached over to the cut, poking at the dried blood – ew, ew, ew, ew, _ew_!

Not wanting to make another cut, Sakura squeezed her eyes shut and ripped the scab off. If she didn't heal it, it'd definitely scar, and then everyone would think she was emo or something. Opened her eyes, Sakura almost squealed!

No wonder it hadn't hurt – it was healed! The scab was just still in place. Sakura looked down at her hands and bit her lip, muffling a few fangirl screams. Once she'd calmed down, the pinkette let out a breath, "Okay," she said, "Now that I know I can heal, I just have to work on my time."

Pushing chakra so her hands again, she concentrated on filtering out the yin part once more. Over and over again, until she could see that all of the chakra on her hands was green, she practiced filtering the yin from the yang.

Five hours of constant practice paid off, and an exhausted Sakura was able to produce a near perfect Mystical Palm technique. Her breath, however, was ragged, and she could feel that her chakra levels were low.

Sakura rubbed her eyes and looked to the horizon, finding that the sun was starting to rise. She mustered up a small amount of chakra and ran up the nearest tree, grabbing onto a branch. "I'm stupid for doing this," she groaned out, and started to do pull ups.

* * *

Omake: Bridal Style

"Sakura-chan! What are you doing, dattebayo?!" Sakura, who'd been working on her tenth set of seventy pull-ups – with breaks in between, of course –, yelped and lost her grip on the branch she'd been holding onto, falling to the ground.

The pinkette tried to flip mid-air, and maybe even try to land on her feet, only to find that all the medical jutsu practice and physical work-out left her exhausted. Sakura squeezed her eyes shut and braced herself, hoping that she wouldn't break any bones when she hit the ground.

There was a grunt and Sakura found herself being held by something soft for the second time in two days. "You really _are_ heavy," a voice grunted out.

Sakura's eyes flew open and she screamed and slapped Sasuke. Shoving herself away from the Uchiha, she landed hard on the ground and scampered away from him as quickly as she could. "One meter away!" she snapped. Naruto snorted, Sasuke scowled, and Kakashi-sensei shook his head.

* * *

 **Sasuke's actions can be explained! In the original story, he only had his rivalry with Naruto to keep him company, and that didn't really kick start until halfway through the Wave arc. Sakura had been talking to him daily since they were around six, halfway through the first year in the Academy.**

 **He's started to see her as a teammate, a precious person. Anyways, that's it for chapter seven. Next chapter will be more training, maybe a bit of the fight, who knows? I just write then go back and edit, that's just how I work. R &R! ~Koi**


	8. Onyx and Emerald: Bonding with the Boys

**Medical jutsu's can use ether yin or yang chakra, but I'm having Sakura use Yang since it's the light side. Yin is more of a Sasuke thing, and one of the best parts of their relationship is how different they are. They actually remind me of Persephone and Hades, if you understand Greek mythology.**

 **Anyways, R &R! ~Koi**

* * *

Sakura blinked, "Spars?" she asked.

It was a common thing for shinobi, Sakura knew that. Just like practicing kata's and chakra control, just like honing your ninjutsu and genjutsu and sharpening your senses, it was a perfectly normal thing to do. Heck, they'd even done some in the Academy.

Why Sakura was surprised when Kakashi-sensei brought it up, well, she had absolutely no clue. Maybe it was suddenly thrust into their training because they'd had to fight the Demon Brothers yesterday, or perhaps it was because both herself and Naruto and Sasuke had been totally curb stomped by Zabuza, though that was natural seeing as their power levels were as different as the sun and moon.

But still, the pinkette didn't quite understand. Yes, she would be fighting others more often, now that she was out of schooling and in the real world. It was foreign to her, though. She'd always done in with girls in the Academy, but she'd have to do it with boys in training.

After all, both her teammates and her sensei were males. And in the real world, too, she'd have to do it with guys too, no not it that sense. And they wouldn't hold back, ether. They wouldn't' stop when she was on the ground.

The kata's were the stepping stones for the practice, but she still couldn't figure out how to move her body the same way as she did when doing those steps she'd studied so hard.

"Yes, Sakura," Kakashi-sensei said, "Spars. Just like in the Academy, though with different rules. There will be no circle, and weapons are allowed, but you can't throw them. Also, if someone hits the ground, you can keep fighting. Got it?"

Naruto nodded, "Yeah, dattebayo! I'm gonna whoop Teme's ass!"

Sasuke rolled his eyes, "In your dreams, Usuratonkachi."

"What's you say, you bastard?!" Naruto growled out. He pushed his sleeves up and stormed over towards the dark hair boy, "I'll beat to into the ground, 'ttebayo!"

Sakura sighed and rubbed her temples, "Can you two stop fighting for a minute?" she asked, "It's really giving me a headache."

"Me too," Kakashi-sensei said, sighing, "And, actually, Naruto, you're not going to fighting Sasuke, today." He pulled out two pieces of paper and held them up, "I'm going to teach you two one jutsu each. You'll have thirty minutes to practice it, then you'll switch to sparring with Sakura."

The said girl's eyes drooped a bit, "And me?" she asked softly.

Kakashi-sensei smiled and rubbed the top of her head, "You have to listen, Sakura. I just said you'll be sparring with the boys."

"But," she said, "Am I not going to learn any jutsu's?"

Kakashi-sensei shook his head, "You're reserves are too small. Besides, you need the most taijutsu work. While you have the smarts to get in and out of situations, you're body isn't strong enough, fast enough, or agile enough."

"Oh," Sakura said, her spirits sinking even further, "Okay. I'll spar, then."

He nodded, "Thanks for understanding. Naruto, come with me. You two, you can start." The albino walked off towards the tree's surrounding Tazuna's house, Naruto practically skipping after him. A few seconds passed in silence, before Sasuke cleared his throat.

Sakura jumped a bit, and turned to face him. "Um," she said, "Ready?"

Sasuke sighed and rolled his eyes, before darting forward towards her. Sakura gasped and stumbled away from him. He cocked his fist back and aimed a punch at her stomach. The pinkette stepped to the side and ducked as his leg sailed over her head.

Sasuke sent another punch towards her head and she ducked again. _'I can't keep dodging forever,'_ Sakura thought to herself, spinning around one of Sasuke's kicks. She whirled around and curled her hand into a fist, sending it straight towards his face.

The Uchiha caught her hand and yanked it up, pulling her towards him. Before Sakura could even process that fact they their noses were almost touching, he drove his knee into her stomach and twirled her around.

Sasuke shoved her face first into the dirt, pushing her arm up her back, "My win," he said, sounding bored. Sakura grit her teeth. No wonder Naruto called him a bastard, he was a cocky prick! What the hell did Ino see in him?

' _What the hell do I see in him?'_ she thought, glaring down at the grass in front of her. _'Kakashi-sensei was right, I'm terrible at this.'_ She tried to push herself upwards, but Sasuke shoved her down, putting his other hand on top of her head.

' _I can do better.'_ **'We can do better.'**

Sakura wrapped her foot around Sasuke's ankle and shoved herself up, tugging his leg forward. She flipped herself to she was on top of him. Yanking her arm from his grip, she grabbed his wrists and pinned them to the ground next to his head.

She was huffing, and her muscles hurt, but Sakura felt proud. Sasuke's eyes were wide, and he looked absolutely shocked. "Amazon," he muttered. Sakura saw red and let go on one of his arms, getting ready to sock him in the face.

That was his plan, though, because he drove his knee into her gut for the second time that day and placed his hands on her shoulders, shoving her forward. She struggled to her feet, only to have them swiped out from underneath her.

Sakura landed hard on her back, and when she opened her eyes, Sasuke was towered above her. He quickly pulled out a kunai and placed it again her throat. Sakura held her breath, worried that if she breathed, she'd get cut.

The Haruno blinked. Wait. She could heal herself! Sakura yanked a kunai out of her pouch and drew her leg back, kneeing Sasuke hard in the side. He winced, and the grip on his kunai loosened a bit. Sakura reached up and grabbed it as fast as she could. She raised both her weapon and the one she'd stolen up to the sides of Sasuke's neck.

"My win," she huffed out, smiling. He glared down at her and sat up. Sakura grinned, getting to his feet. The boy followed suit, smirking. He suddenly punched her in the collarbone. Sakura hissed, stumbling back and holding the sore spot.

She had definitely not expected him to retaliate. Then again, Sasuke had more pride in his pinky than the entire village put together. _'It must be an Uchiha thing,'_ she thought to herself, getting into her Hyuga stance. She balled her hands into fists.

Sasuke seemed to recognize it and leapt forward, aiming another punch at her torso. Sakura dodged and sent a fist towards his kidney as fast as she could. He stepped around it and Sakura swiped a foot under his legs, pushing his shoulders so he stumbled back and slamming her fists down onto his stomach.

Yep, he definitely had abs, though they probably weren't that defined... _yet_.

Sasuke leapt up in the air and landed back on the ground a meter away from Sakura. Sakura rushed him and lashed out with a kick towards his shoulder. Her caught is like he did her fist and tugged her forward. Sakura lashed out with her other leg, aiming for the back of his knee.

Sasuke cursed and dropped her limb, jumping over the blow. Sakura landed on her back with an 'oomph.' She rolled around his leg as he drop kicked where her head used to be. Pulling herself to her feet, she spun around like she'd seen Hinata do and sent one fist after the other towards Sasuke, one to his neck, the other to his heart.

He leaned out of the way of the first one but got hit right in the chest with the other. "Chakra scalpel," she said, and Sasuke's eyes widened a bit. He actually looked a bit scared, glancing down at the fist pressing against his left pectoral.

"Once I learn it," she grinned, "That'll be fatal."

Sasuke smirked a bit, "Medical ninjutsu," he said, "So that's what you were practicing?"

Sakura blushed. "H-How'd you know?" she stuttered out.

He shrugged, "Secret." Suddenly, he'd grabbed her wrist and yanked her around, driving his knee into her lower back and pulling her arm upwards so her toes were barely touching the ground. He grabbed her other limb and yanked it across her front. "Thanks for the blanket, by the way," he whispered into her ear.

Sakura's entire body felt as it was on fire. She looked like some kind of firecracker she was blushing so much. Struggling a bit, Sakura found she couldn't get out of Sasuke's grip. "Fine," she huffed out, "You win."

A beat.

"And you're welcome."

His grip slackened a bit and Sakura threw herself forward, Sasuke right behind her. She twisted to get out of his arms and found herself hitting the ground face up. "Ow," she muttered, her eyes still squeezed closed, "I really shouldn't have done that."

"You really shouldn't have," Sasuke replied. Sakura opened her eyes to find herself staring at the side of the said boys neck. She sucked in a sharp breath. "What?" Sasuke asked. He pushed himself up and his eyes went wide.

"Uhh," Sakura said dumbly, staring at him. She had no idea how many times it had happened since they'd become a team, but she was starting to get tired of it. Really…she just hated being so…close to him.

She stared up at his eyes and saw the night sky. She saw the coals of a dying fire. She saw obsidian and onyx. She saw hatred and pain and fear. She saw eyes that belonged to someone who'd locked everyone out, yet was begging for love.

Sasuke blinked and it was all gone. He had gotten up and was looking down at her as if she'd grown a second head. "Are you going to stare all day long?" he asked. Sakura shook her head and pushed herself to her feet.

"Do we fight again?" she asked.

"No," Kakashi-sensei said, emerging from the trees. _'Please tell me he didn't see that!'_ Sakura screamed inside her head. "Times up. Naruto, you spar with Sakura now. Sasuke, come with me."

"Hn." Sakura watched as he walked away, not even sparing herself or Naruto a glance. The blond didn't seem to mind, though, and was bouncing up and down on the balls of his feet.

"Ne, ne, Sakura-chan," he said, "Guess what? I'm a Futon type, dattebayo! Isn't that awesome!" Sakura sent him a small smile and nodded, "Almost everyone in Fire Country has a fire release! That's what sensei told me, 'ttebayo."

"Really?" Sakura asked.

"Yeah, 'ttebayo!" They talked for a few more minutes then began their spar. It wasn't as hard as the one with Sasuke was, but it definitely wasn't easy. Naruto seemed to have tons of energy, even though he'd just learned a new jutsu and had been practicing it for a while.

It ended up tiring Sakura out. She still won, though. In fact, she won every single spar she had with Naruto. Another thing was that unlike her spar with Sasuke, it wasn't one big, long, slow fight like. Naruto stopped when he was down, and they started all over again. They were short fights, but they left her winded.

Damn, could he move around!

By the time the thirty minutes were up, Sakura was winded and her muscles were aching. And Naruto looked as if he'd just woken up. "Another one, Sakura-chan?" Naruto asked, smiling as if he didn't realize his opponent was basically sleeping standing up.

Before Sakura could stop herself, she replied with a single word "Sure." He grinned and charged her like all the times before. Sakura stepped out of the way of a punch, grabbing his wrist and yanking it around his back.

She swiped his feet out from under him and shoved him down to the ground. Naruto sighed, "Your win, dattebayo."

Sakura blinked. Wait, had the fight actually started? Her body had just moved on its own. And it had acted much faster than she had with Sasuke. She hadn't even been that tired in that spar. Getting up, she looked down at her hands.

"What the hell?" she whispered to herself.

* * *

Dinner that night was awkwardly silent. Naruto was too busy scarfing down so much food that he didn't even bother talking. Sasuke was quite, as usual, though he didn't make eye-contact with anyone like he normally did.

Kakashi-sensei had somehow been fast enough to eat all his dinner without even showing anyone his face. Tazuna had exchanged a few words with him at the start of the meal, but was otherwise quite. Tsunami-san didn't say a word, keeping her eyes training on her son, Inari.

And, of course, Inari , who had been glaring at his food the entire time, was the first to break the silence. "All of you should just go home!" he snapped, slamming his chopsticks down on the table. Everyone immediately stopped eating to stare at him.

"We don't need your help!" he continued, "Leave! You're all useless!"

"Inari," Tsunami-san hissed, "Apologize right now!"

The boy shot to his feet, "No!" he yelled.

"Inari," Tazuna said, raising his voice so it was almost a yell, " before whipping around to face team seven and its sensei, "There's no such thing as a hero!"

Sakura put her own chopsticks down slowly and raised her head, looking Inari in the eye. "We're not here to be heroes," she said, "We're here because your grandfather hired us."

Inari clenched his hands into fists, his face heating up in what seemed to be a mixture of anger and embarrassment. "Hag!" he shouted, turning around and sprinting out the door. Sakura froze in shock.

"Hag?" she whispered. Naruto let out a bark of laughter, Kakashi-sensei snorted, and Sasuke put a hand over his mouth, trying to hide his smirk. Even Tazuna was smiling a bit. Tsunami-san, on the other hand, was not.

"I'm so sorry," she said, looking Sakura in the eye, "He didn't mean it, truly."

Sakura forced a smile, "I know," she said, "I was just a bit…shocked, that's all."

* * *

The next day, Sakura was assigned to follow Tazuna to the bridge site with Kakashi-sensei. Naruto and Sasuke were left behind to watch the house and work on their newfound jutsu's. Needless to say, Sakura was more than a bit jealous.

Sure, she'd learned to Mystical Palm technique, but it wasn't _offensive_. Besides, she couldn't repair anything worse than a cut. She only knew how to mend things, that was it. If something happened, if they were attacked by one of Gato's thugs, she wouldn't be able to do anything.

Sakura shook her head. No. Even if she wasn't able to use any of her chakra to do something flashy, she could still hit. The Haruno was proud of her taijutsu, even if it was one-upped by Sasuke's. She had been taught the most basic of Hyuga kata's, and she'd been practicing Blossom style for over a month.

She ran into Gai-san and his team at least once a week in the mornings and did some conditioning with them. Though it'd been watered down for her, since she was only a genin. She did over an hour of stretching before bed, and was able to actually bend backwards and touch her heels when sitting down.

None of her teammates could do that…at least, she thought. She'd never actually seen them try. Sakura knew she could rely on her hand to hand combat skills.

"Sakura," Kakashi-sensei called over, "Can you help Tazuna lift a few things?" The pinkette bit her lip but nodded. Great, she'd just given herself a mini pep talk and now her teacher was asking her to do some manual labor.

Was she really that weak?

Making her way over towards the bridge builder, she hefted up a bucket of cement and hauled it over to where he directed her. "Can you grab a beam for me, ojou-chan?" one of the workers asked. "It's in that pile over there."

Sakura lifted her eyes to meet his own. The man gulped, "Um, you don't have to if you don't want to?" he tried.

Sakura huffed and turned around, stomping over towards the pile. The man that was logging what was taken looked up and put his clipboard down, getting ready to help Sakura move the beam. Sakura ignored him and stanched what she needed up.

As she walked back workers stopped what they were doing to stare at her. Jaws hit the floor of the unfinished bridge as eyes bugged out.

"Is this okay," she said, hefting it onto her shoulder.

The worker looked from the beam back to Sakura then to the beam again, "Ojou-chan," he said, "Just how strong are you?"

"What do you mean?"

"That's thirty kilos," he deadpanned. Tazuna, who'd found a way to pick his jaw back up, shouted for the other workers to start, well, working.

Sakura glanced down at what she was holding, "Well, I do train every day." Maybe she wasn't as weak as she thought.

"I can only imagine. How many weights do you lift?"

Sakura shook her head and set the beam down, "I don't use any weights."

"Oh."

"Hey. pinky!" Another worker called, "Get one two, will ya?"

"My name isn't pinky," Sakura muttered softly. The worker in front of her flinched as she whipped around and stomped back to the pile of beams.

Kakashi-sensei smiled a bit.

* * *

"What, dattebayo?!" Naruto snapped. Sasuke and Sakura quickly shushed him. Kakashi-sensei had told them to be quite for a reason. If Tazuna or Tsunami-san found out, there was a chance they'd blab to people, and that'd create mass chaos.

An A-Rank missing-nin on the loose? Shinobi would freak out about that, too.

"It's only a possibility, though," Kakashi-sensei said, his voice so soft it could rival Hinata's.

"We saw him die, though," Naruto huffed, "He can't attack, 'ttebayo." The blondes eyes went wide, "Unless he's a zombie!"

Sasuke whacked him upside the head, "Usuratonkachi," he muttered.

Sakura raised a hand, "Since I was, you know, knocked out when all this happened, could you bring me up to date?"

Kakashi-sensei nodded, "The hunter-nin used senbon."

"What's that, 'ttebayo?" Naruto asked.

"Long, thin needles," Sakura explained. Kakashi-sensei raised an eyebrow. She blushed a bit, "Hinata uses them."

"I see," the albino said, "Senbon can be used to do many things, such as target specific parts of the body. It's even possible to put someone in a death-like state."

Sasuke nodded, "And the fake hunter-nin claimed he was dead and retrieved his body. That makes sense. Zabuza's head wasn't taken, after all."

Naruto made a face, "Ew, dattebayo. The take the heads?"

Sakura nodded, "Yes, Naruto, they take the heads and burn the bodies, didn't you listen in class?" Both Sasuke and Kakashi-sensei turned to face her. "Right, he didn't."

"Hey," the said boy snapped, "I did too pay attention in class, dattebayo!"

"We're talking about the Academic side," Kakashi-sensei said.

The blonds face fell. "Oh."

"So," Sakura said, "If Zabuza's still out there with some accomplice…"

"He's going to attack again," Sasuke said, "For sure."

"I'll blow him away with my Futon, 'ttebayo," Naruto said, sticking his nose up in the air.

Sasuke snorted, "You can't even blow a few leaves off a tree, dobe, how are you going to kill a missing-nin?"

"I never said I was going to kill him," Naruto snapped, "And I can too blow leaves off of trees."

"Oh really?" Sasuke sneered, "I'd like to see you try."

"Fine then!"

Kakashi-sensei chuckled. Boys would be boys. Sakura shook her head in disappointment. She just hoped they'd grow up soon. She watched as both Naruto and Sasuke leapt to their feet, glaring daggers at each other.

Though that was a long way off.

* * *

 **If any of you are confused on what Sakura's outfit looks like. her top and gloves are basically almost identical to Sarada's, though her mock neck is a bit tighter and doesn't have the Uchiha crest, but the Haruno crest, on the back. Her bottoms are like in Shippuden, but with black spandex to match her gloves, and she wears standard, black shinobi sandals.**

 **That's about it. I'm keeping most of the outfits the same, except for Hinata and her belt, which has tons of poison vile's and stuff hanging off of it. The belt itself is totally awesome in my opinion. She basically looks the same as in Shippuden, especially with her long hair, though her hoodie's sleeveless and her pants have cargo like pockets on the side for more poison. Ino also has a slight alteration, though I haven't really talked about it. You know the bindings around her stomach and thighs, the ones that keep her from looking like a slut?**

 **Those are black. She also doesn't wear the arm warmer/guard things, too.**

 **Anyways, those are the only changes in outfits. Once I hit the post timeskip, everyone will look the same. Review to help me get to a hundred! ~Koi**


	9. Ice and Blood: The Battle of the Bridge

**Thank you to my amazing beta, SweetGurl818! ~Koi**

* * *

" _Hold her down!" Ami shouted, sneering down at the sobbing pinkette in front of her. Her friends rushed forward and grabbed the said girl, shoving her to the ground. She screamed and flailed, resisting as much as she could._

 _Ami snorted as they pinned the small child down and hovered over her. She brandished a kunai she'd stolen from kunoichi practice earlier that day. "Stay still," she hissed, and pressed the blade to the girl's neck. Immediately, the shrieking silenced._

" _For someone who wants to be a shinobi," Ami said, "You're pretty pathetic." The girl hiccupped. Ami's smile suddenly turned sinister. "I'll give you a treat," she whispered, and dragged the blade to the girls wrist._

" _Ami," one of her friends said, "Isn't this going a bit far?"_

 _Ami shot her a glare, " To be a kunoichi, you have to be used to pain." Ami turned her attention to the girl under her, "Consider it as another lesson. Cover her mouth, will ya?" One of Ami's goonies shoved her hand over the girl's lips as their leader's kunai sliced her wrist._

 _The girl screamed, but the palm over her mouth smothered the sound. Ami repeated the motion until the pinkette's entire forearm was covered with bloody lines. She was about to move to her other limb when there was an ear splitting screech._

" _Sakura!"_

 _Ami swore and sprinted off, her friends behind her. The girl, now dubbed as Sakura, curled up into a ball and began sobbing hysterically. "Ino-chan," she cried, watching as the blond ran up to her._

" _Hinata," she snapped, turning to her lavender eyed companion, "Get help."_

 _The Hyuga, looking at Sakura's arm in disgust and terror, nodded, gritted her teeth and turned around to search for someone who could help._

" _Don't get a teacher," Sakura whimpered, "Please, I don't want my parents to know."_

 _Hinata glanced back at her best friend worriedly, her mouth set in a grim line, "Fine," she replied, her voice at an average level for once._

 _Ino pulled out her handkerchief and pressed it over the gashes in effort to stop the bleeding, trying not to gag at the sight of all of Sakura's blood. They remained that way for a while until Hinata returned with her guardian, Ko, out of breath and looking worried._

 _Ko-san rushed forward, gently asking Ino to move out of the way. The Yamanaka nodded slowly and hesitantly pulled bloodied handkerchief away. The Hyuga's hands lit up green as he rested his palms above Sakura's cuts._

 _One by one they healed, albeit slowly, and Sakura's skin started to slowly gain color once again. "Will they scar?" the girl asked._

 _Ko-san looked her in the eye, "Wounds healed by medical ninjutsu will only scar if the weapon was poisoned or if it's been over ten minutes since the wound was made."_

 _Tears welled up in Sakura's eyes and she let out a sob. Hinata covered her face with her hands and started to cry. Ino punched the ground until her knuckles were red and raw, swearing the entire time. Ko-san looked at the girls, then down to the Academy student in front of him._

" _I can grow new skin," he said, "It'll feel tight and sting for about a week, but you won't scar."_

" _Can you do that?" Ino hiccupped._

 _Ko-san smiled, "Yes, Yamanaka-dono, I can." Her face lit up. "But don't come to me if you have an internal injury or something wrong with your chakra pathway; only a handful of medical ninja can actually handle wounds like that."_

" _Thank you," Sakura whispered, bowing her head._

 _Ko-san turned to Hinata, then back down to the pinkette, "You're in debt to the Hyuga family, now, though," he said, "This isn't battle, and I'm not a registered medical ninja; this is an act of kindness."_

 _Ino wrinkled her nose up, "But Hinata's the heiress!" she whinnied._

" _That's w-why," the said girl muttered, "It's be-because I had to go to t-the trouble of getting Ko, and he had t-t-to use h-his chakra on a civilian who h-hasn't gr-graduated yet."_

 _Ko-san smirked, "I believe your father would classify it as 'wasting my chakra,' but, yes, that is how our clan works."_

 _Sakura looked down, "I can give you guys food from my bakery."_

 _Ko-san shook his head, "That wouldn't work." Sakura frowned. "But,_ I _am the one who decides how I want you to pay us back." He got to his feet, signifying he was done. Sakura sat up and rubbed the new skin on her forearm, wincing a bit._

" _I want you," he gave a questioning glance over to Hinata, and the girl whispered Sakura's name, "Haruno Sakura, to learn the Mystical Palm jutsu once you have graduated the Ninja Academy, so you may never have to use the chakra of a Hyuga clan member to heal yourself."_

 _Sakura's face scrunched up, "Mystical Palm?" she asked._

" _What I just used," Ko-san explained, "You filter out your yin or yang chakra until you only have either one. It'll turn green, and you'll be able to heal."_

" _So," Sakura said, "How much time do I have after I graduate to learn it?_

" _Until you become a chunin," Ko-san said._

 _Sakura nodded, "Got it."_

 _Ino scoffed and crossed her arms, "Really?"_

" _It's better th-than some," Hinata stuttered. Ino huffed but stayed silent._

 _Ko-san shrugged, "Who knows," he said, "Maybe you'll become one of the best medical ninja in Konoha."_

 _Ino snorted, "Konoha? Sakura'll become the best in the Land of Fire." Hinata nodded in agreement._

 _Sakura smiled softly, "I doubt it."_

* * *

Sakura looked down at her forearm and rubbed the skin. It seemed so long ago that that had happened. _'When I get back to Konoha I'll need to tell Ko-san that I did it,'_ she thought to herself.

"Everything okay, Sakura-chan?" Naruto asked. Sakura glanced up to find her teammate staring at her with a fixed expression. Across the room, Sasuke's eyes were locked on her as well. "You look sad, 'ttebayo."

Sakura shook her head, "I'm fine, Naruto, just spaced out. Thanks for asking."

He grinned, "No problem."

Sasuke rolled his eyes and walked towards them, plopping down so the three genin sat in a triangle, "Kakashi said that Zabuza's going to appear tomorrow."

Sakura frowned, "Sasuke-san, why don't you use 'sensei'?"

Sasuke looked her dead in the eye, "You just brushed off the fact that an A-Rank criminal is going to come after us," he deadpanned, "Something is wrong with you."

Naruto snorted, then made a choking noise in order to hide it.

"And you just threw my question about honorifics aside," Sakura countered, feeling a bit smug at the comeback. Sasuke just stared at her like she'd stripped down to her chest wrappings.

"It's disrespectful, you know," she continued, "Even Naruto uses 'sensei.'"

"Yeah, dattebayo," he said, "Even I – wait a second, 'ttebayo! What do you mean even me?"

Sasuke smirked and Sakura fell into a fit of giggles. Naruto's laughter joined within seconds, and soon all three were chortling, even though Sasuke's sniggers were barely heard.

Kakashi-sensei found that the right time to walk in. He raised his visible eyebrow at the sight in front of him, "Did someone give you drugs?"

"Why does everyone think I'm high, dattebayo?!" Naruto suddenly shrieked, throwing his hands up. Sakura couldn't help her giggles, clutching her sides, and Sasuke put his hand over his mouth in order to smother his snorts, and cover his grin.

"Everyone?" Kakashi-sensei asked, quirking an eye at Naruto

"S-Sasuke-san asked once" Sakura explained through her laughter.

"I see. Anyways, I just wanted to tell you three to rest up," his eye curled up into an upside-down half circle as he smiled, "But it's good to see you three having fun. Relaxing together helps teamwork."

"Does that mean we should bathe together?" Naruto suggested with a leer. Sakura and Sasuke smacked him upside the head as Kakashi-sensei sniggered.

More banter was exchanged until Sakura finally got fed up with it all, smacking both of the boys hard on the arms and strutting towards her futon. "Good night," she huffed out, pulling the blanket over her head and shutting her eyes.

"Night, 'ttebayo," Naruto grumbled. Sasuke grunted.

* * *

"Naruto," Kakashi-sensei instructed the next morning, "I want you to make some kage bunshin and leave them behind at the house to guard Tsunami and Inari." The blond nodded and three bunshin poofed into place.

"Why do they need guards?" Sakura asked.

"Gato's an underhanded man," Kakashi-sensei said, "He wouldn't think twice about using hostages to stop the bridge from being completed."

"He didn't think twice about sending Zabuza, ether," Sasuke muttered.

Naruto snorted, "I'll beat up anyone that comes here, dattebayo!"

"Except for civilians," Sakura added.

"Yeah, except for them." he replied sheepishly.

Sasuke sighed and shook his head, "Usuratonkachi."

Naruto glared, "Teme."

"Don't you even think about starting on that," Sakura hissed, "We're leaving to go to the bridge _now_ and I am _not_ having you two fight the entire way there."

Kakashi-sensei whistled, "Wow, it's rare to see you be so assertive, Sakura."

The pinkette sighed, "If Zabuza's really going to attack," she said, "I don't want to be mentally exhausted because of these two idiots when he does." Kakashi-sensei opened his mouth to reply, but snapped it shut when Tazuna closed the door to his house.

"Everyone ready?" he asked. The genin of team seven and their albino sensei nodded. "Okay, let's head out."

* * *

"Zabuza-san," a cool voice said, breaking Sakura from her stupor. She'd been staring at Zabuza and Kakashi-sensei, who were currently moving at speeds she couldn't track with her bare eyes. A figure in a mask stepped into view.

"You," Sasuke growled, lowering his stance.

Sakura leaned over towards him, "Who?"

"The fake hunter nin, 'ttebayo," Naruto explained.

"One of you take care of him!" Kakashi-sensei ordered. Sasuke nodded and rushed forwards towards his opponent. He grabbed two kunai and ducked down once he got close to the masked shinobi, slashing at his chest.

Sakura gritted her teeth and forced herself to stay in position. She couldn't charge out and help him like she wanted to; she needed to make sure Tazuna was safe. He was her team's charge, and even though a battle was going on, no, _because_ a battle was going on, she wasn't allowed to leave him alone and unprotected.

He would be killed in an instant if Zabuza got to him. If Sakura wasn't able to hold her own against the nuke nin, Tazuna wouldn't last a second.

Still, it pained her to watch as Sasuke dodged attack after attack from the enemy. The mission always came first, she'd written it down on enough tests to remember it. Sakura never knew it would be this hard, though, having to stand by as her teammates and sensei fought with their lives on the line.

' _No wonder Kaa-san wanted me to think twice about being a kunoichi,'_ Sakura thought to herself, _'She had to endure this for twenty plus years before she retired.'_ She watched as the genin stared as he raised his arms, his hands flying through a familiar set of seals.

Realization dawned on the pinkette; weaving a jutsu would leave him open! It was their first real mission – there was no way in hell she'd accept those stupid D-Ranks as an actual assignment. She wouldn't be able to live with herself if she let Sasuke die on it.

"Sasuke!" she shouted in attempt to warn him, "Don't!"

Her words came too late. Just as Sasuke was about to spew out a torrent of flames from his mouth, the masked shinobi rushed forwards, driving the three senbon in his hand into Sasuke's abdomen. The boy stumbled back in shock.

The ninja snatched Sasuke's kunai from his hands and drove it into the genin's shoulder. The dark haired boy grunted in pain and dropped to his knees. Sakura's eyes widened, her mouth agape in a silent scream. No, there was no way, he couldn't be, no. No!

Sakura screamed. The masked shinobi held up his hands in a seal unknown to the Haruno and spoke calmly. "Makyo Hyosho." Mirrors of ice rose up around Sasuke and his opponent, blocking them off from everyone else.

Naruto quickly made four kage bunshin and sent them out to guard Tazuna on all sides, before charging into the mirrors after Sasuke. Sakura watched in horror as his form disappeared.

"Naruto!" she screamed so hard her throat felt raw, "Sasuke!"

"Don't you dare follow!" Kakashi-sensei commanded, parrying a strike from Zabuza's Kubikiribochi, "I need you here!"

Sakura turned to stare at him, her eyes wide. She nodded slowly, getting back down into a ready position.

"Heh," Zabuza sneered, "Don't feel left out, Pinky."

Tazuna noticed the bunshin before Sakura did. "Sakura!" he shouted, and the girl pivoted to her right. A kunai drove itself into her shoulder and she grunted in pain, dropping to the ground and clutching at the wound.

The masked shinobi's bunshin stared down at her from the inside of his mask. "Tazuna," Sakura hissed, "Will you be alright with Naruto's bunshin?" The bridge builder nodded slowly, back tracking a few steps.

The blond haired masses of chakra followed, keeping their formation tight around him. Sakura struggled to her feet and ripped the kunai out of her shoulder, placing a glowing hand over the cut. She could only hope a muscle hadn't been severed.

If it was just a stab wound, the Mystical Palm would heal it just fine, but if she needed to knit something back together, she was screwed. She had just barely mastered small cuts.

"Medical jutsu," the masked shinobi hummed, "is rare to find in a genin, since you need amazing chakra control." Sakura glared at him but stayed silent. "Still, that's the knife I used on your teammate, so you better hope you're _compatible_."

Sakura inwardly cursed. Sasuke was an AB, she knew from Ino's constant spewing about him. As an O type, his blood would make her body attack itself, and that was never a good thing. However… She raised her head and stared through his mask's eye holes, "A small amount of blood won't do anything," Sakura said, "It'll be replenished in a second."

The shinobi tilted his head to the side, and Sakura could practically see his smile through the plaster. "I wasn't talking about blood types," a wave of pain spiked through Sakura's shoulder, "The kind of chakra that's attached to it will." Sakura winced and bit down on her lip.

"That boys a Raiton type," he continued, taking a step forward until they were almost touching.

Sakura hissed in pain, he knees wobbling, "How do you know that?" she growled.

"I've been spying," came the blunt reply. "But at least, know you know that you're weaker to lighting than most, seeing your reaction is more than expected; which means you're a Doton."

Sakura glared up at him. That had to be a simple assumption, no one would analyze that much. Well, maybe Ino could, she did get top marks after all.

Sakura gasped as he grabbed her by the throat, breaking her from her stupor. He hoisted her up and up until her feet were flailing around in attempt to touch the ground.

. Memories of the Demon Brothers flooded through her mind. Sakura thrashed around, clawing at the shinobi's hand. She needed a plan, and fast.

She wasn't being used as a hostage like she was before, that meant it was a matter of time until he killed her. Her eyes traveled over towards where Naruto and Sasuke were. They were trapped in the ice mirrors and she wasn't able to do anything about it.

Wait. Ice mirrors. _Ice_ mirrors!

Sakura let out a laugh, "Thanks," she forced the words out, "For letting me know about my affinity." His mask hid the boys' expression, so Sakura couldn't tell what he was thinking.

"You're from Kiri, aren't you?" he stiffened. She let go of his arms and summoned as much chakra to her hands as she could. "My mom came from there, so I've heard all about the purging. Must have been hard, with your Hyoton and all."

"What are you playing at?" he hissed, strengthening his hold on her neck. Yeah, she'd definitely have a bruise _. 'I'm starting to get thankful for Ino buying me this mock neck,'_ she thought, knowing it'd cover the marks.

Sakura sucked in as much air as she could and slammed them into the boys' chest. He immediately dropped her and stumbled back, clutching at where he'd been hit. A crack suddenly appeared where his heart was, snaking out until his entire torso and some of his shoulders looked like a broken mirror.

"Smart," the bunshin said, before shattering into hundreds of pieces of ice.

Sakura scrambled to her feet, having watched the entire thing from the ground, and drew a kunai, getting into her Hyuga stance.

"How'd you do that?" Tazuna asked, "You can't possibly be _that_ strong."

"It's Sakura-chan," one of Naruto's kage bunshin said, "What do you expect, 'ttebayo?"

Sakura glared at the bunshin and kept her voice calm, "Hyoton," she repeated once more, "The ice release. It combines Suiton and Futon. I'm a Doton, as you know." she could practically feel his shock grow, "Earth trumps water."

"That…," Tazuna said, before sighing, "Makes sense."

The bunshin suddenly stiffened, and Sakura heard Naruto shout from inside the mirrors. "One of our brothers was expelled, 'ttebayo" the blond on the left hissed.

Tazuna whirled on him, "Is my family alright?!"

The bunshin behind the bridge builder nodded, "Yeah, some people came, but it looks like the other two are taking care of them. One is already knocked out."

The right bunshin winced a bit, "You're daughter's scarily protective, dattebayo."

"What'd she do?"

The bunshin in front of him let out a shaky smile, "She said that if anyone hurt Inari, she'd bite her tongue off, dattebayo, and swallow it so they wouldn't have any hostages."

Sakura and the other bunshin gagged along with Tazuna. "I guess she gets that from her mother," he said, laughing a bit.

"The other two expelled themselves," the bunshin on the left said again, "Both of the thugs are gone, 'ttebayo."

Tazuna nodded, "I see," he said, before taking a hard look at each of the kage bunshin, "You guys act differently than Naruto does."

The bunshin guarding Tazuna's back shrugged, "We all have our own personalities."

Sakura hummed. The Kage Bunshin no Jutsu was even more powerful than she'd first thought. Physical bunshin made of chakra, the ability to relay information after they were dispelled; what next? Substituting them for other bunshin? Hiding bombs in them?

Sure, the jutsu was amazing, but it made Sakura feel even worse about her own abilities.

The only jutsu she knew were the standard three and the Mystical Palm. But the latter wasn't even useful in battle, and her henge may have been good for a genin's, but it was weak for an overall kunoichi's. People knew how to tell a normal bunshin from the real body, too.

The only useful jutsu she knew was the kawarimi, but it starts to become predictable after a while.

Sakura's eyes darted back and forth, switching from watching Kakashi-sensei to staring at the ice mirrors. She gotten rid of the bunshin, but that was through the use of Doton chakra, which neither of her teammates had.

Suddenly, there were four poofing sounds and a sudden rush of chakra that had Sakura dropping to her knees. "Shit," she muttered. Behind her, Tazuna gasped and stumbled back.

"The clones are gone," he muttered.

Sakura didn't even bother to correct him since she was too focused on the overwhelming chakra that was rushing over her in waves. It was probably what had dispelled the bunshin. "Sasuke," she whimpered, "Naruto."

In the back of her mind, she knew it couldn't be the masked shinobi that was letting off the demonic chakra; simple Doton chakra wouldn't be able to do anything against it. And if he had the chakra inside him, so did the bunshin.

But it couldn't be Naruto or Sasuke ether, they were only genin. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Kakashi-sensei stop and pull out a scroll, wiping some blood from his wound. He created a kage bunshin before smearing the liquid on the scroll.

The bunshin sprinted over to her and hauled her up by the shoulder, "Sakura," he said, "I need you to listen carefully."

"Kakashi-sensei," Sakura whispered, turning to look at the mirrors, "What's going on."

"I need you to run into the mirrors and deal with Naruto."

"What do you mean deal with Naruto?!' Sakura snapped, "Shouldn't I be dealing with that masked shinobi?!"

"I'm staying here and guarding Tazuna, Sakura. Naruto knows you well enough for you to be able to stop him."

"Kakashi-sensei!" She seethed, "What the fucking hell is going on?!"

"Sakura!" he shouted, "Go. In. There. It's an order."

Sakura looked from Tazuna, to her sensei, then to the wall. Without another word, she turned on her heel and ran towards her teammates. She burst through the mirrors, skidding to a stop. What she found stopped her heart. She sucked in a breath.

' _Sasuke…'_ Naruto let out a roar. _'Sasuke…'_ "I kill you!" he charged at the masked shinobi and punched him in the face. _'Sasuke…'_ His body was sent flying, crashing through the mirrors.

The blonde growled, stalking towards the shinobi as his mask crumbled. _'Sasuke…'_ The Uzumaki suddenly stopped, staring. _'Sasuke…'_ "You," he said, "You're the one that helped me with my Futon jutsu."

The boy leaned up and smiled, "Y-Yeah." _'Sasuke…'_

"Why?" Naruto screamed, "Why did you…why did you...," the blond choked on a sob, tears welling up in his eyes. Sakura's own went wide.

' **Do you understand, Sakura? The world is cruel. Everyone wants to use you, just like they used you mother and your grandparents. They see tools. You can only rely on those who know you.'**

Sakura turned her head to look at Sasuke's body.

Senbon were everywhere, sprouting from his neck, his torso, his arms. They were everywhere. **'You can only trust those who love you.** ' Her eyes found the small trail of blood running down his chin. **'Sakura…'**

It was the voice she'd heard when she was meditating, Sakura knew it. She'd known for a while. It'd commented on things every once in a while, but had stayed silent the past month. Yet, now, here it was.

' **You can only trust…me.'**

"You killed Sasuke," Naruto whispered, more to himself than to the shinobi.

Sakura sucked in a breath. She shook her head, tear trailing down her face. No. _NO!_

' **KILL IT!'** the voice hissed. Before she even knew what she was doing, Sakura rushed forwards as the shinobi struggled to his feet, reaching towards Naruto's neck. She whipped out a kunai and with an animalistic roar she lodged it in his neck. Naruto yelped and scrambled back as she tore the knife across the rest of his throat.

The boy's eyes went wide as he coughed up some blood and sucked in a breath…

Only to hold it for eternity.

* * *

… **Do you all hate me now? ~ Koi**


	10. A Voice in my Head: Return to Konoha

Sakura stared off as Kakashi-sensei laid the offerings in front of the graves.

Only Naruto knew what she had done, but he hadn't told a single soul.

Actually, he hadn't even confronted her about it. In fact, the only thing that happened to the blond once he'd found out she'd killed Haku – as she soon learned was the boy's name – was that he seemed to calm down.

Zabuza had found Haku's body and immediately assumed he'd committed suicide, seeing as Sakura had placed her kunai in his hand after she came to her senses.

Gato had soon showed up, and upon seeing the boy's broken body, made a comment rude enough to make Kakashi-sensei angry. The albino had let Zabuza go and even gave him a kunai so he could brutally maim the businessman.

But, no, that's not what he did.

Momochi Zabuza, with no use of his arms, decapitated a man using a kunai that was held in between his teeth. He'd been placed next to Haku afterwards, shed a single tear upon seeing the young boys face, and passed on.

The bridge had then been named the San-Kamigami, after Sasuke, Naruto, and Sakura's hard work.

Sasuke had awakened his full, three tomoe Sharingan in the fight inside the mirrors and wasn't able to deactivate them until Kakashi-sensei told him how.

Naruto's pupils were also split and his irises were red for some odd reason, and only returned to normal after a nights rest.

They looked like gods to the thugs that had come with Gato, and to the villagers, rounded up by little Inari – who'd apparently gotten a pep talk from one of Naruto's clones.

And Sakura, with Haku's blood splattered over her cheek and her pink hair cascading down her back, was their goddess.

Therefore, after both the thugs and the villagers bowed to them in horror, Tazuna decided on the name. Even Kakashi-sensei started to call them that, though it was only to spire them.

And even though Sasuke and Naruto thought otherwise, Sakura had a feeling it'd spread beyond Wave.

She'd already heard villagers talking to merchants, who hadn't yet been able to leave, about the three Kamigami, a group a genin fresh out of Konoha's Academy that not only looked like gods with their red hair and eyes, but had defeated Momochi Zabuza all on their own as well.

A farfetched lie, of course.

Why? Because of three simple reasons. One, they were _not_ fresh out of the Academy, they'd been genin for over three months. Two, Sakura had pastel pink hair, it was not blood red. Three, it was the combination of Kakashi-sensei's Raiton jutsu and all the wounds from the thugs that had killed Zabuza.

Sure, Sakura had killed Haku, but, again, no one but Naruto knew that.

And she was keeping it that way.

But, still, it was nice to see the villagers being lively again.

"Are shinobi really tools, 'ttebayo?" Naruto suddenly asked, breaking Sakura from her stupor.

Kakashi-sensei turned to face him, before glancing at Sakura, then to Sasuke.

"Yes," he said, "We're tools. But we make our own decisions and live our own lives. The so called 'rules' are nothing but a recommendation that was made back when the First Shinobi World War began."

"They were made during the war?" Sakura asked.

"Which means," Sasuke said, "That the Shinobi Guidelines are for soldiers, not shinobi."

Kakashi-sensei smiled and nodded, "Exactly."

* * *

When team seven got back to Konoha, Sakura was greeted by the sight of Gai-san, Lee, and TenTen-chan, along with Ino. Her best friend she'd been expecting, but team Gai? Not so much.

"Gai-san," Sakura's brow twisted in confusion, walking up to him. Ino caught sight of Sasuke and squealed his name, flouncing over and attaching herself to his arm, much to the Uchiha's dismay. "What are you doing here?"

Gai-san just grinned, his teeth sparkling in the sunlight, "I came to see how you did on your first C-Rank," he answered, "Lee decided to tag along, and we ran into TenTen on our youthful jog here."

Sakura smiled, "Thank you," she said, bowing slightly.

While she hadn't trained with team Gai in a while, she did bump into Lee and Gai-san a lot. It was mostly on their morning runs, though. Sometimes she even tagged along, though they always ended up slowing their pace down for her.

So," TenTen-chan said, "How'd ya do?"

Sakura chuckled and rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly, "Well," she drew the word out, "It wasn't a C-Rank."

Lee blinked, "Then what was it, Sakura-san?"

"An A-Rank," the Haruno muttered back.

"Ehh?!" Lee shouted, catching the attention of everyone around them, "Sakura-san and her team went on an A-Rank mission?!"

Ino stopped fawning over Sasuke for a second and looked up at him. "Ohmygod! Sasuke-kun! You went on an A-Rank! Your _sooooooo_ cool!"

TenTen-chan gagged, "That's it," she said, "I'm sorry, Sakura, but I have this thing where I can't be within a kilometer of a fangirl. I'll see you around, and congrats on the A-Rank."

Sakura giggled, "See you around," she said, before leaning in and whispering in the weapon mistress's ear: "And good luck with Neji."

TenTen-chan blushed but nodded, bounded off towards a training compound. She had an urge to throw something sharp and pointy.

Lee and Gai-san said goodbye as well, following close behind their teammate.

Sakura glanced back to watch as Naruto jumped up and down, waving his arms around his head as he told Izumo and Kotetsu – who had decided to check up on their favorite prankster – all about the mission.

"And then, and then," the said boy exclaimed, "Sakura-chan was all like 'have a taste of Doton chakra,' 'ttebayo, and smacked his chest and he went boom!"

Both chunin looked over towards the said girl, who wearily raised a hand and waved. "She didn't actually say that," Kakashi-sensei corrected.

Izumo nodded, "Of course, not!" he exclaimed, "it's Sakura-chan."

The pinkette scowled at that.

"So," Kotetsu quirked an eye curiously, "You got all this from your bunshin?" Naruto nodded so fast it looked like his head was going to fly off. "Have you gotten a hold of how to filter out the pain?" he asked.

"Yeah, 'ttebayo," the Uzumaki answered, "Kakashi-sensei said I just need to know it didn't happen to me, dattebayo. Something about my brain playing tricks or something, dattebayo."

Izumo smiled brightly and bent down, ruffling the kid's hair, "You've really grown up, Naruto."

Kotetsu nodded in agreement, "Nothing like the kid who dumped neon pink paint on us when he was six," he added. Naruto gave out a sheepish laugh and rubbed the back of his head.

Kakashi-sensei scoffed at his fellow shinobi's words, though, "Try saying that when he attempts to pull your mask off you with a ninja wire," he grumbled, his voice just loud enough for the chunin, and Sakura, to hear.

They blinked at each other, then looked over to Naruto.

"Did it come off?" they chorused.

Kakashi-sensei sighed and rubbed his face in exasperation, before proceeding to smack them both hard enough upside their heads to make them stumble a few metric feet.

Sakura smiled at the sight and turned towards her best friend and her crush. And by that, she meant Ino's crush, because there was no way in _hell_ she had a crush on Sasuke. Like, seriously, who would even do that?

Haha, hahaha...

' **You really need to start figuring out your feelings,'** the voice spoke. Sakura scowled, muttering a few colorful words under her breath.

"And you need to shut up," she added, looking around to hope no one saw her speak.

Glancing back over to Sasuke, the pinkette watched as he shoved Ino off him and stalked over to where she was. "Make her go away," he growled, pointing at the Yamanaka. Ino stared at Sakura, then to Sasuke.

Her nose scrunched up a bit.

Sakura sighed, "Can't," she said. He grunted and stormed off towards the Uchiha compound.

"So," Ino said, making Sakura jump. "An A-Rank, huh," she elbowed Sakura in the side and waggled her eyebrows at the viridian eyed girl, "Sasuke-kun _must_ have used his dojutsu."

"Yeah," Sakura turned to look at her best friend.

She thought back to the blood colored irises and their hypnotic tomoe. They were so beautiful, so breathtaking; Sakura was captivated just remembering them. Ino would _definitely_ want the drawing the Haruno had promised.

But…Sasuke had seemed angry when he found out Kakashi-sensei had one of his clan's Kekkai genkai. He probably didn't want lots of people to know.

"I didn't really get to see it up close, though," she lied. "Sorry." Sakura really didn't know what came over her. She should have just explained them to Ino.

The said girl pouted, "Oh well. So, do you want to go get a manicure or something? I was thinking of getting Bloody Scarlet this time. What do you think?"

Images on Haku's body flashed through Sakura's mind. The pinkette went pale. "Actually," she said, "I need to go see Hinata."

Ino sighed, "What for?"

"I learned the Mystical Palm."

"What?!" Ino screeched, grabbing Sakura by the shoulders and shaking her, "You have to teach me. Imagine, me healing Sasuke-kun!" She squealed. "Kyaaa! That'd be so amazing."

Sakura glared at Ino. Suddenly, she realized that she was tired and her body hurt, and all she wanted was a really long hot bath and one of her father's warm pastries. "Maybe another day," she said, trying to brush her off.

"No!" Ino protested, stomping her foot and puffing out her cheeks, "Now!"

"Ino," Sakura hissed, "I witnessed a decapitation, I was choked twice, and I was stabbed in the shoulder; _I want to rest._ "

Ino backed up and put her hands on her hips, "This isn't like you," she said, her blue eyes glaring hotly. "You're trying to get all the attention,"

"No, Ino," Sakura sighed, "I'm not. I was just trying to tell you that I wanted to rest."

"Then you could have just said that," Ino scoffed out, "you didn't need to lie about all those over dramatic things."

Sakura felt her anger spike. "I almost died, Ino!" she snapped, "Do you seriously think I would lie about that."

Ino hummed, "Yeah," she said, her voice painfully blunt. She even laughed a bit afterwards. "You're Haruno Sakura, the civilian born, crybaby kunoichi; there's no way you would survive a situation like that. Hatake-sensei probably guarded you all."

She sighed dreamily, "Except for Sasuke-kun, he could be a jonin right here and now, if he wanted to. Too bad you and Naruto-baka drag him down."

Sakura sucked in a breath.

Sasuke had been closer to death than she was. He wasn't ready for jonin. Hell, no one in their team was even ready for chunin! They needed to train and work together more, even though the boys both resented that idea.

Naruto might have had his clones, but once he finally ran out of chakra, which Sakura knew had to happen at some point, he wouldn't be able to do much hand to hand combat. With his reserves, he was more of a ninjutsu type.

And Sakura, well, even though she was a heavy hitter, she had blind spots. And, if she really did want to become a medic – which was becoming a bigger and bigger possibility every passing day – she'd have to be protected.

Even though she absolutely hated the idea. She'd rather be fighting side by side with people instead of watching their backs and they stood in front of her.

There was also Sasuke.

With his work with weapons and his family's affinity for genjutsu, he'd need people to back him up and cover his own weaknesses. Sure, he could handle his own, but how is he going to manipulate the tools he could use so perfectly if he's stuck in a one on one taijutsu battle?

"Ino," Sakura said, walking past her childhood friend, "I'm heading over to the Hyuga compound."

Ino huffed, "Fine,"

As soon as the Sakura disappeared around the corner, she let out a string of swears and punched the nearest wall. A few nearby civilians jumped, staring at her before scampering away.

Sakura knew Ino was just trying to be fun, but she had almost, Sasuke had almost…

"Gah!" Sakura shouted, pulling her hair, "This is infuriating!"

"What is?"

Sakura whirled around to find Ko-san standing around a meter away. "Ko-san," she smiled happily, running up to him, "Guess what I did?"

He raised an eyebrow, "Are you not going to answer my question?" Sakura brushed his words to the side and held up her hands. Her chakra flickered into place, and within thirty seconds it shone a mint green.

Ko-san's eyes widened, "Wow," he said, "Only a few months out of the Academy and you've learned it?"

"About that," Sakura said, her chakra dissipating, "I only just learned it, sorry," She bowed, "I was so busy with training I didn't start right away."

Ko-san sucked in a breath, "When did you learn it?"

"A few days ago," she answered.

"And how long did it take you to be able to do that," he asked, suddenly sounding a bit desperate to find out.

Sakura thought for a moment, "Around seven hours."

"S-S-S-S-S-S-Seven?" he sputtered.

"Is something wrong?"

"Sakura," Ko-san said, bending down so he was eye to eye with her, "It normally takes people seven _weeks_ to be able to summon their medical chakra that fast." Sakura gaped at the Hyuga. Seven weeks?

"That alone," Ko-san continued, gesturing to her hands, "Can be called the work of a genius."

* * *

Countless thoughts ran through Sakura's mind as she sat on the playground swings, rain pouring down around her. She'd murdered someone. It'd happened over a day ago, yet the thought hadn't really sunk in until now.

She'd ended someone's life; she'd taken someone away from their family.

' **Sakura-chan,'** the voice sang inside her head **, 'He deserved it. He killed Sasuke.'** Sakura closed her eyes.

"But he didn't," Sakura muttered, "Sasuke's fine. I…I killed someone over nothing. I…I…I" The pinkette gripped the chains holding the swing up so hard that her knuckles turned white. The drop in temperature around her didn't help with the cold, sinking feeling she had in her chest.

' **Sasuke was close to death.'**

"That doesn't mean Haku had to die!' Sakura snapped.

The raindrops falling on her suddenly felt too warm, too stick, and too heavy. She couldn't get enough air. She was suffocating, drowning, even.

"He didn't have to die, goddamn it!" she shouted, her vocal volume the loudest it had ever been.

The Haruno choked on a sob, burying her face in her hands. **'Hush, child,'** it cooed, **'People will hear. Close your eyes and think to me, it'll be much easier.'**

Sakura complied, but not because it told her to. She knew if she kept her eyes open any longer the water pouring down around her would start to resemble blood.

The park slowly faded into the ruins of what looked to be a village. _'Where am I?'_ she asked, looking around.

' **In Konoha,'** the voice replied, **'This is simply a fragment of a memory I've decided to show you. Much better than your original mindscape.'**

' _What was that like?'_ An image of a simple, moonlit pond surrounded by cherry blossoms popped up in the sky, lingering for a few seconds before flickering out. _'I think I'd like that better.'_

' **Too bad. The Uzumaki ruins suit you better.'**

' _Uzumaki…ruins.'_ Sakura looked around and found the symbol from Naruto's, and much of the jonin/chunin around the villages, jacket.

' **The Uzumaki's,'** the voice explained, sounding as if it wasn't too far way, **'while not one of Konoha's founding families, were very close to the Senju. Therefore, you see their mark everywhere. In fact, the swirl on the Konoha symbol comes from the Uzumaki crest.'**

' _They're a clan?'_

' **They** _ **were**_ **a clan,'** it corrected, **'Got wiped out, much like the Uchiha. Refugees were scattered everywhere, one of them was Naruto's mother. Spunky girl, she was.'**

' _Hold on,'_ Sakura said, starting to get confused, _'What does this have to do with me?'_

' **The Uzumaki came from the Senju, whose original founder was the brother of the first Uchiha. The Hyuga's were cousins of those who brothers, as well.'**

' _Again, what does this have to do with me?_ ' Sakura asked.

The voice sighed, **'The Haruno clan is a distant blood relative of the Uzumaki, therefore, of the Senju, the Uchiha, and even the Hyuga. This means that you have very ancient blood in you, Haruno-Uzumaki Sakura.'**

"Uzumaki," she hissed out loud, "What the hell do you mean?"

Silence.

The pinkette growled and flung her eyes open, the ruins fading away. She got to her feet and stormed towards the stairs that led back up to the street. **'Going so soon?'**

"You're not answering me," she snapped. The voice chuckled.

' **It'll all be explained in due time, darling. Too much information at once can be hard to remember. You can always pop in for some tea, dear, it gets awfully boring in here. Oh, look, I think a dust bunny just rolled by.'**

Sakura ignored it and made her way back to her house. The voice didn't speak to her again the entire way there.

The silence in her head was welcome, though it did leave her feeling a little empty.

It wasn't quite for long, though, seeing as soon as she made the mistake of entering her house through the front door, she was attacked by her dad and his endless amount of questions on 'where she had been,' 'did she know what time it was,' and 'why she was soaked to the bone.'

Sakura sighed and pushed Kizashi off her, "Tou-san," she said, "I'm fine, I was just training and got caught up in the rain."

Kizashi looked down at her like she was an idiot, "It started raining a half an hour ago, young lady."

"That's why I decided to walk home," Sakura lied, "I didn't want to slip on the water. The training ground I was using was far away, too."

He pursed his lips but didn't say anything else. Mebuki handed her a towel and told her to take a bath and change. "I'll lay out some pajamas for you on your bed," she said. Sakura nodded and headed up the stairs towards the bathroom.

What she needed was a long soak to warm her body and relax her muscles. She tilted her head back so the water rushed over her scalp and hummed in delight. Tazuna's water had been ice cold, so something as simple as a hot bath seemed like it was luxury.

So, as she sank down into the steaming liquid, she felt the stiffness in her muscles fade away almost immediately.

Sakura had a feeling this would become something she'd never take for granted again. Sure, she was used to it, with all the training she did, she was used to coming home exhausted and taking a hot bath. But her stretching helped everything stay fit and relaxed, so it never really felt different to her.

She hadn't stretched once in her mission, though, and that alone made the tightness in her legs and the throb in her arms even worse.

Sakura stayed soaking in the bath until her fingers and toes started to wrinkle up like old prunes and the water started to reach the cooler side of lukewarm. After that, she quickly washed her hair and body and got dressed, heading off to bed.

As soon as her head hit her pillow, she faded into sleep.


	11. Anceint Lineage: Blossom and Boar Clash

**You know that A/N a few chapters ago when I said stuff about an opening, well, I think the non-existent opening has changed as of this chapter. I'll probably do this every ten chapters or so, just pop in what songs I would use for the opening and ending.**

 **Anyways, so here it is. The opening would be the same as the original Naruto's third one, Turning Sadness Into Kindness. The ending would be Photograph by Ed Sheeran. Anyways, R &R! ~Koi**

* * *

The following month was quiet compared to what had happened on the San-Kamigami Bridge. Training was the same as it had been before the mission to Wave, but Kakashi-sensei had moved on from chakra control and kata's and was now starting to focus more and more on team sevens separate abilities.

The group's number one knucklehead had learned two additional Futon jutsu's after getting semi-mastery of his first, which was apparently named Daitoppa. It was basically a big blast of wind that got more destructive the more chakra you used.

Perfect for Naruto, really.

He also learned the Reppusho, which was basically a concentrated version of the first. If you used them with weapons, in which Naruto failed every time, they acted as a blade, extending the weapons reach.

The third futon jutsu he learned was the Kazekiri no jutsu, which release a thing, whip like current of air that could cut into things.

Sakura learned the water down version of the jutsu (Doryūheki) that Kakashi-sensei had used against Zabuza; the Renga no jutsu. He said he'd seen it be used by almost every genin that was fighting, so it had to be a C-Rank at most.

The albino taught it to her, nothing less.

Sasuke wasn't taught any other Raiton jutsu's than the first, Raiden, but was given a basic genjutsu scroll by Kakashi-sensei. He'd already learned two, one where the targets surroundings were changed and one where it made it look as if everything around you was burning.

He was currently working on his third with one of Naruto's kage bunshin, who kept telling him about where the gaps were and what he was seeing.

The real Naruto was currently practicing his ninjutsu against his bunshin. He'd make ten, then try and focus his wind against just one of them.

"In case of some kind of hostage situation, a long range Futon jutsu would work better than others," Kakashi-sensei had said once on the way back to Konoha.

So, even though Kakashi-sensei insisted the situation wouldn't come up any time soon, Naruto was trying it out.

The Reppusho had worked instantly, being condensed into a single shot after all, but the Kazekiri no jutsu always took out three, since it was a horizontal slash and Naruto couldn't figure out how to make it vertical ("Grrrr! What the hell, dattebayo! It shouldn't be that hard, goddamnit!").

The Daitoppa just blew everything everywhere, including the bunshin and his teammates, so he wasn't even allowed to practice it when others were around.

Finally, after another failure, Sakura took pity on Naruto. "If one works, then just use that when the time comes!" she called over.

Naruto blinked, "Oh," he said, "Why didn't I think of that before?"

"Because you're an Usuratonkachi," both Sasuke and the kage bunshin he was working with snapped.

"Hey!" the Uzumaki shouted, "I'm your original, dattebayo!" The bunshin stuck out its tongue in response.

Sakura rolled her eyes and turned back to her sprints. She'd been running from one side of the training field and back for around twenty minutes, and her legs were really starting to feel it.

The chakra weights he'd given her weren't exactly helping with that, ether.

Then again, Naruto was forced to make as many kage bunshin as possible, then put as complicated a henge as he could on them. Half would practice water walking, it having been taught to them a week ago, and the others would do as many jutsu as possible until all their chakra ran out and they poofed away.

It was the only way he was able to make his reserves grow. The poor boy practically crawled home, most of the time to spoiled food and cup ramen. It concerned her, really.

Sure, she brought him fresh pastries every morning for breakfast, and made both him and Sasuke bento's for lunch, but for dinner, the poor boy's food was about as bad for him as it could get.

Sakura was starting to get worried for his health, actually.

But, Sasuke wasn't perfectly peachy, ether. The kid was sleep-deprived, studying as much genjutsu theories as he could. He went home only when the librarians closed up and left, and most of the time he had five or more books in hand.

Sakura could tell he stayed up late reading, too. The bags under his eyes were as dark as his hair, and his irises were always foggy with sleep. He was exhausted, yet he still pushed himself.

Some might find that righteous or something, but Sakura saw it as _stupid_.

The other day, he'd _accidently_ , as Ino had said with a wink, stumbled into the Yamanaka flower shop on his way home from the library at night. Of course, he'd left as soon as the clingy blond grabbed a hold of his arms, and batted her eyelashes at him.

And, much to Ino's chagrin, he went straight to Sakura, who was passing by on the way from heading home from running a late night errand for her father, and asked her to lead him to the Uchiha compound.

"Sakura," he'd said, looking her dead in the eye. Inside the store, Ino gasped. "Do you know where my house is?" She had nodded dumbly, which earned her another look of horror from Ino. He'd grunted in reply and grabbed her arm, dragging her with him.

She'd been let go as soon as he got to the compound.

The next morning, the pinkette was bombarded with questions about the boy. She'd ended up being late to her training with team Gai. Neji still hadn't let it go, though she'd worked extra hard the entirety of the following week.

Kakashi-sensei wasn't able to get her good enough taijutsu training on his own, so he sent her Gai every morning. And, while it was never as bad as Lee had it, it left her aching and sore when she finally dragged herself to the last half of team sevens practice…

Sakura skidded to a stop in front of a tree and pivoted, running as hard as she could back to where she had started. Her breath was actually starting to _burn_ her lungs. Her throat felt raw and her mouth was as dry as Suna's sand and she wanted to stoooooppppp.

…Only for him to put her through all of this!

The Haruno understood why Kakashi-sensei was training them like he was, though, and, to be truthful, she couldn't blame him for it.

Naruto was supposed to be the ninjutsu part of the team and Sasuke the genjutsu half. The Uchiha would also specialize in bukijutsu, the use of weapons, and Kakashi-sensei had already taught Naruto a basic storage seal, though it could only hold a single shuriken, but it was getting somewhere.

Sakura was supposed to be the taijutsu and medical jutsu part of the team, and Kakashi-sensei would tie up any and all loose knots.

But, in order for Sakura to fulfil her role, that meant she had to be agile and quick enough to dodge attacks but had to pack the punch in order to be the brawns of the team. And to do that, she had to work extra had on taijutsu days and train harder than the boys on specialty days.

Saturdays were no longer off, and that's when she practiced her medical jutsu. Sunday was dedicated to D-Ranks. The entire day was filled to the brim with them. It left her exhausted when paired with all of her training.

"Stop!" Kakashi-sensei yelled.

Sakura's feet quickly slowed down, and she stumbled, before falling on her butt and attempting to catch her breath. Naruto halted his ninjutsu and the boy's bunshin suddenly stopped spinning, as Sasuke had released his illusion.

The albino cleared his throat, "You can dismiss you bunshin, Naruto," he said. The blond nodded and all of his kage bunshin poofed away. "You three," he pointed in front of him before curling his finger inward, "Here."

Sakura struggled to her feet, her legs feeling like jelly as she walked over towards her sensei. He held up three sheets of paper.

"How do you guys feel about the Chunin Exams?" he asked.

"It's a promotion," Sasuke said, "What do you mean, 'how do we feel about it'?" Kakashi-sensei glared at him, but got only a grunt in response.

"It sounds cool, 'ttebayo!" Naruto exclaimed. Sakura was pretty sure he didn't even know what the Chunin Exams were. After all, he'd never paid attention in class back at the Academy.

Kakashi-sensei smiled and nodded, "Good," he chirped, "Because I nominated all three of you."

And, suddenly, the month of peace and training that Sakura had been enjoying was gone. And it'd been replaced by a hell house.

The Hatake soon handed each piece of paper to its intended recipient and let all three kids go once they took their slips, leaving them to do whatever they wanted. The jonin poofed away soon afterwards, disappearing with a mock salute and a definite smirk under his mask.

Once he was gone, Sasuke walked off towards the direction of his compound, mumbling things about training, books, and jutsu. Naruto just sprinted towards Ichiraku Ramen, singing some odd song in order to express his excitement.

And Sakura?

She sighed and pulled out her pocket watch, flipping it open so she could stare at the picture. She'd been looking at it quite often, as of late. It'd become some kind of habit, one that had started soon after she returned from Wave.

The pinkette would wake up with the object clutched in her hands and immediately hit the button to open it. Kakashi-sensei's masked face would greet her, followed by Naruto's blinding grin and Sasuke's dazzling smirk.

She stared down at the photo, memorizing every color and every curve of her teammates and sensei's face. The chunin exams would be dangerous, even Sakura knew that. There was a chance that they would all get hurt.

' _I'll protect them,'_ she thought to herself.

Sakura snapped the pocket watch shut and tucked it away, her Chunin Exams slip following close behind. "I have to train," she said. The pinkette scooped up her hair and pulled it into a bun on top of her head.

She slipped out of her mock neck, holsters, and weights, threw them over one of the stumps in the middle of the training field, and grabbed the chakra tattoo paper Kakashi-sensei had given her – a few weeks ago he'd pulled a Nara and decided it was too troublesome to put them on himself, so the genin of team seven had to do it.

Applying a bit of her chakra, she stuck the temporary tattoo onto her abdomen and pulled the paper away. Once the Haruno was sure the mark was on for good, she nodded to herself and started to work. She sprinted up the nearest tree without hesitation and grabbed a hold of the highest branch.

Sakura hoisted herself up immediately and hooked her legs around the limb. She crossed her arms behind her head and started her sit ups.

Now, to be completely honest, she hated sit ups. And pull ups. And push-ups. Basically anything that had her tugging more than half of her body weight around. The green eyed girl grunted as she brought her chest to her knees.

And doing any of those while gravity was in play was also pretty high on the list.

The pull ups Kakashi-sensei had her do on a branch, those weren't as bad. Why, you might ask? Well, for one, her sensei told her to do them, so she knew it wasn't voluntary, and that always made her feel better. Two, he was there, along with Sasuke and Naruto, all of whom could catch her.

Right now?

Sakura glanced down at the ground as she did another sit up. She was alone. And that meant that if she lost her grip, she'd splat onto the ground. And with her luck, someone would probably have to scrape her off the grass.

Sakura sighed and shook her head, "Fifteen," she muttered to herself, lowing her upper body. She hung by the branch for a few seconds, staring at some of the strands pf hair that had wiggled out of her bun and were currently reaching towards the ground.

She put her arms back into their original position and started again. She wouldn't be able to rest, ether. At least, not unless she grabbed a hold of the branch and hoisted herself up.

Even then, she'd have to climb all the way down to the ground then head into the market place to get some water. She'd already used hers up in during team training. Sakura knew she'd be fine, though.

She was a kunoichi, a member of the Haruno clan, and, dare she say, extremely stubborn when it came to getting things done.

She'd make her way through it.

The pinkette closed her eyes and breathed out through her mouth. The only good thing about sit ups was that they were repetitive, and, after a while, at least, your abdomen got numb. That made them easier to do, no matter how annoying they were.

Sure, she was good at them, heck, she was better than the rest of the team, minus Kakashi-sensei, when it came to sit ups. But that didn't mean she liked them. Really, it was all just because Ino wanted a flat stomach for Sasuke.

' **That girl's a pig,'** the voice hissed in disgust, **'She's so self-centered.'**

Sakura let out a shaky breath, _'You,'_ she thought, _'are as annoying as a fly.'_

' **Ha. I'd like to hear you say that in front of an Aburame.'** Sakura growled a bit. **'Anyways, I've decided that I'm bored, so, I wanted to see what you were doing.'**

Sakura was instantly confused. _'Don't you live in me?'_

' **I live in your mind, in that little picture I showed you in the sky a week or two ago.'**

' _It was a month,'_ she corrected.

The voice huffed, **'Whatever. I basically sit there and play shogi with a kage bunshin all day long.'**

"You can do jutsu in my mind?!" Sakura exclaimed out loud.

' **Shhh,'** the voice whispered, shushing her, **'People will hear you and you'll be sent to the loony bin.'**

Sakura sighed, _'You're just a voice in my head, how would you know that.'_

Silence. Then, suddenly, the world spun, and Sakura was once again standing in an unfamiliar place. _'Where am I?'_ she asked, looking around.

' **Guess.'**

' _The Uzumaki ruins?'_ she tried.

The voice scoffed, **'Do you really expect me to use the same location two times in a row?'** It clicked its tongue in disappointment, **'You really think so lowly of me. No, darling. Just turn to the right.'**

Sakura followed the command and turned slowly, staring at the gigantic cliff side that loomed above her.

' **This, my dear, is Konoha before its founding.'** The Haruno whirled around suddenly, gaping at all of the trees in front of her.

' _Son of a – !'_ she exclaimed, stumbling back in order to her away from something that should definitely _not_ be present in her mind. Konoha was founded roughly four generations ago, which rounded to about a hundred years.

In that time period, any and all drawings were in black and white, and photography hadn't been invented. Which meant… _'How the hell do you know… How have you seen this?'_ Sakura asked slowly.

' **I have my ways,'** the voice hummed.

'… _Are you a ghost?'_

It barked out a laugh, **'No, Haruno-Uzumaki Sakura, I am not.'**

Sakura scowled and sat down, _'Why do you keep calling me that?'_

' **You have Uzumaki blood in you,'** it said briefly. There was a small sipping sound accompanied along with it, too.

'… _Are you drinking tea?'_

' **Why, as a matter of fact, I am.** ' The voice chuckled a bit. Sakura resisted the temptation of opening her eyes and smacking her forehead. At one point she'd assumed the voice was some kind of godly being.

But now, it was more annoying than Naruto when he was begging Kakashi-sensei to treat him to Ichiraku Ramen.

' **Ya know,'** the voice continued, **'I could always call you Haruno-Uzumaki-Senju-Uchiha-Ōtsutsuki Sakura. But I'm sticking to the one you're closest to. And, by the way, you got the Uzumaki blood from your father.'**

' _How do you know that?!'_ Sakura protested, _'He's adopted.'_

' **Correction, he was orphaned. There's a reason the Uzumaki ruins are called the Uzumaki** _ **ruins**_ **.'**

Sakura sucked in a shaky breath, _'So'_ she said slowly, _'let's say he_ is _part of the Uzumaki clan. How do_ you _know?'_

' **Too much information at once is hard to remember,** ' the voice chirped.

Sakura groaned, _'You said that last time!'_ she whined.

' **I know,'** it sang, **'Anyways, you might want to wake up, you just passed a hundred and fifty sit ups and your legs' grip's failing.'**

Sakura's eyes snapped open just as her legs gave way. The Haruno screamed in a mixture of shock and anger as she rocketed to the ground. Squeezing her eyes shut, she curled herself up into a ball and braced for impact.

"Oomph!" Silence. Sakura winced, raising her head from her chest and peeking up at whatever she fell on.

"What the _hell_ … Haruno?"

Sakura raised a hand and let out a forced smile, "Hi, Neji-san. What brings you here?"

"I should ask you that," he growled out, "Now, get _off_." Sakura nodded frantically and scrambled away from the Hyuga branch member. "This training ground's supposed to be empty," he hissed, "I checked."

Sakura looked over to the stump with her weights and mock neck on it, "Did you miss that or something?"

He narrowed his eyes, "I came in the back way."

Sakura blinked, "There's a back way?"

"Through the trees," Neji said, shaking his head in disappointment. "Anyways, what were you doing up in that tree?" he asked, making his way towards the other side of the training grounds, where his stuff was.

"Sit ups," Sakura explained briefly, "I'm practicing for the Chunin Exams."

He whirled around and raised an eyebrow, "You're participating?" Sakura nodded. He didn't reply.

"Sakura!" The said girl whirled around in time to find a blond blur crash into her. A wave of high pitched, incomprehensible chatter followed right after, letting Sakura know exactly who the person was.

The pinkette pushed her best friend away gently and smiled, "Ino," she said, glancing briefly at Neji. He raised a hand and turned away, walking towards the Hyuga compound. "What are you doing here?"

The Yamanaka ignored Sakura and glanced over her shoulder, "Who was that?" she asked, a small smirk playing on her lips. Sakura forced down a groan. She knew that face, that devious, planning face she'd gotten to know so well over the years.

"Hyuga Neji," Sakura said, forcing herself to look away from him. She needed a blank expression when saying his name, or else Ino would get a crazy idea. "Hinata's cousin," she added.

"Hmm," Ino hummed out, turning back to face the girl. She winked, and Sakura instantly knew her pan had failed. "I thought you had a crush on Shikamaru, but I guess it's actually him." The blond giggled a bit and swatted at Sakura's shoulder. "Anyways, I have great news!"

Sakura forced a small smile. Ino always jumped to conclusions, it was natural for the girl to do so. If Sakura just ignored everything and didn't protest, it'd go away. "I'm participating in the Chunin Exams!" Ino squealed, hopping up and down.

Sakura grinned. She wouldn't be alone! "That's awesome, Ino!" the Haruno exclaimed, "My teams doing the same! Maybe we could practice together or something!"

Ino stopped moving and looked at Sakura in confusion, "You?" she asked in surprise, sizing the pink haired girl up. Sakura's mood instantly fell. "Well, I guess Sasuke-kun's good enough to cover for both your and Naruto's mistakes."

Sakura frowned a bit, "Couldn't my sensei have just seen that we were doing well and decided to nominate us."

Ino barked out a laugh, "Naruto's the dead last, he's useless. Besides, everyone hates him, I'm pretty sure even your sensei does." Sakura clenched a fist behind her back. Ino had absolutely no idea how strong Naruto was becoming.

He knew tons of ninjutsu and his weapons aim and taijutsu were rapidly getting better. He'd…he'd defeated Haku, too, even though she'd been the one to kill him.

And Sakura knew that not everyone hated Naruto. Takashi and Tadashi had been warming up to him after she took him to the takoyaki stand for the first time. Iruka-sensei liked him as well, along with Kakashi-sensei.

 _Especially_ Kakashi-sensei.

The albino treated the boy as if he was a younger brother. She'd seen him walk Naruto home countless times, and when the team was on a D-Rank and the villagers were being nasty, he'd put an arm in front of him and glare at them.

Kakashi-sensei didn't hate Naruto. In fact, it was almost the exact opposite. Ino didn't know a thing. She didn't what Sakura and Naruto and Sasuke had to go through on the San-Kamigami Bridge.

The pinkette bit her lip in order to keep a straight face. It was alright. It was just Ino and her assumptions. "And, you," Ino continued, "you're from a civilian family. I mean, sure, your mom's from Kiri, but that doesn't mean she was strong or anything. Being a ninja is all in the bloodlines, after all."

Sakura's last piece of self-control snapped.

"Don't you dare insult the Haruno clan," she bit out, storming past the Yamanaka and snatching up her clothes and weights.

Ino snorted, "Clan?" she said, mimicking Sakura's voice by raising her own a few pitches, "Don't assume things, Sakura." The said girl balled up her mock neck, whirled around, and chucked it at Ino's feet.

"The Haruno's," she hissed, slapping her weights onto her arms, "were one of the major clans of Kiri before the cleansing. We were able to control out chakra even better than our own bodies and minds, something a Yamanaka like you would never be able to acomplish!" Ino gaped, her mouth opening and closing like a fish.

"Don't you dare insult Naruto again, ether," Sakura spat, "He's just as strong as Sasuke, and just as strong as me."

Ino scoffed at the words, "That's imposs –"

"And if you say one more bad thing about my mother," Sakura continued, interrupting the blond, "Then I'll shove my kunai so far up your ass that when you try to open your mouth to give a blowjob like the whore you are, it'll poke out instead of your tongue!"

Ino stumbled back in shock. Her complexion rose to a scarlet red in anger and her face hardened, "You're a bitch," she spat.

Sakura smiled and flicked her off, "And you're a slut." She whirled around and stormed off towards her house, ignoring Ino's yells, and the tears streaming down her face.


	12. The Hyuga's Decree: The Haruno's Will

**And I introduce… the LOVE TRIANGLE! Mwahahahahahahaha! ~Koi**

* * *

After her fight with Ino, Sakura found herself running to the wildest of places: the Hyuga compound.

Once the blond was out of sight, the pinkette sprinted from one end of the village to the other without dropping her speed at all. Her eyes burned, her legs throbbed, and she struggled to keep the air in her lungs.

The combination of her sobbing and her running was making it harder and harder to breath. It was almost as if she was back in battle. As if she was back on the bridge. Sakura sucked in a shaky breath and stumbled around a corner.

And she didn't want that! She didn't want any of that!

She'd found enough time to dry her tears and calm her pulse before she arrive at the gates. "I need to see Hinata," she said, staring the guards straight in the eye.

They looked at each other, then to her, and raised an eyebrow. "Hinata-sama has no business with a civilian."

Sakura grit her teeth and stood up as straight as possible. "I am a kunoichi of Konoha," she snapped, motioning to the hitai-ate on her skirt.

The guard on the right glanced down at the metal, "I see. Still, she is in the middle of training with Hanabi-sama."

Sakura sucked in a shaky breath, "Then let me see Neji-sama."

The one on the left snorted, "Neji-sama?" he asked, "Don't make me laugh, that branch member's nothing but scum. What are you, a fangirl?"

Sakura took a step closer to them and lowered her voice, "I am a disciple of Hatake Kakashi," she seethed, "a teammate of Uchiha Sasuke and Uzumaki Naruto, a training partner of Hyuga Neji, and, above all, a good friend of Hyuga Hinata's."

The viridian eyed girl reached up and jabbed her finger into the left guard's chest. The guard on the right shifted into his fighting stance, but Sakura ignored him. "And Neji is stronger than both of you combined."

The left guard looked down at her and sneered, grabbing her shirt and hoisting her up. Before he could do anything, though, he was stopped. "Stop," the guard on the right snapped, "Set her down."

The guard glared over towards him, "Fine," he hissed, dropping Sakura, "Brat."

The guard on the right kneeled down so he was eye level with the Haruno, "I'll take you to see Neji," he said, "Just let people know before you come here next time." Sakura nodded. "Great," he chirped, grabbing her by the wrist and leading her into the compound.

He led her past a few long style houses and some gardens until they stopped in front of what looked to be a training field. Sakura glanced around and quickly found the Hyuga she'd seen not too long ago.

"Neji-san," the guard called, "You have a guest."

The said boy turned around and frowned a bit, "Thank you," he said, his eye trained on Sakura's face, "You should return to duty before Hiashi-sama finds you are gone." The guard nodded and turned around, heading back to his post.

As soon as he was gone, Neji immediately took two steps closer to Sakura and looked her dead in the eye, "You've been crying," he deadpanned. The pinkette bit back a smartass retort. She was here for comfort, getting herself kicked out would be the opposite of what she wanted.

Sakura held up a hand to her face and pretended to be confused, "How could you tell?" she asked.

"I'm a Hyuga," Neji explained, "I tend to pick up the little things." Sakura scoffed, but smiled nothing less. "And don't play dumb with me, you lie like a genin."

"I am a genin," Sakura retorted. She wasn't that bad at keeping a poker face, was she? "And so are you."

"I will not be for long," he sized her up, "You were training with the Yamanaka, so why are you here." Sakura shifted a bit. Neji picked up on the signs and groaned, dragging a hand over his face, "I am not one to consult at times like this."

"I know," Sakura whispered, "Believe me."

He glared at her, "You should talk to Hinata-sama."

"She is training with her sister," Sakura said. She knew from experience, Hinata's father had invited herself and Ino over to train when they were younger, after all; a Hyuga training session was not to be disturbed unless someone was dying or the village was being attacked.

Neji sighed, "So you come to me? Why not to your teammates?"

"Unless you haven't noticed," Sakura snapped, "Both Sasuke and Naruto were deprived of positive social experience as children; I doubt that seeking help from them would do anything besides frustrate both me and them."

"So, you came to me?" he asked, pinching the bridge of his nose and shaking his head.

"I came to Hinata," Sakura corrected. He rolled his eyes at the statement but didn't respond. "May I train with you?'

"Fine," he said, walking back over to a log with cloth wrapped around it. Sakura smiled a bit. Over the past month of her interactions with team Gai, Neji's attitude towards people had been improving.

He still spewed on and on about fate when provoked, but he didn't go after Lee as much, and he'd been seen training with TenTen more and more.

Gai-san claimed that it was because Sakura was civilian born, yet showed so much raw talent when it came to taijutsu and chakra control. The Hyuga didn't know about Sakura's lineage, however, but she planned to keep it that way.

While she may not have been literally born into a clan, she had the Haruno clans' blood along with its name, which meant she was still 'fated' to do well.

"Wrap your knuckles and practice strikes," Neji ordered.

Sakura nodded and peeled her gloves off, setting them down next to her pouch, which she'd also taken off, and pulling out some bandages. She quickly wrapped her wrists and stood on the opposite side of Neji.

Lowered her legs, she center herself and started on a jab-hook-jab patterned. Neji was doing the same, but with his clans' traditional open palmed style. They continued like that for a while, fists smacking against wood, until Neji final broke the silence.

"Why'd you come to me?" he asked suddenly.

"I came to Hinata," Sakura answered, sending the strongest hook she could into the padding, "You know that."

"You could have left."

Sakura stopped beating up the log in front of her and leaned over so she could look at the Hyuga, "Hinata lets me complain, she lets me gush." The pinkette looked down at her hands, then to the log, then back up to Neji, who had also leaned over so he could see her.

"Training is just the same," she smirked, "I guess."

"You're insane," he said. She could tell he was forcing down a smile, the edges of his lips were twitching, and the lavender in his eyes became slightly more prominent.

"Thank you," Sakura giggled out, curtsying. Over the last month, she found herself being able to read most of team Gai, minus Gai-san and Lee, almost as well as she could with Naruto and Kakashi-sensei.

She only wished she'd just be able to do the same with Sasuke. The pinkette sucked in a breath. Sasuke.

 _Ino_.

She felt small wells of tears well up in her eyes. Sakura choked down a silent sob and brushed the droplets away. Neji's eyebrows furrowed together in confusion, "Sa –" he started, taking a step further and stretching out his arms, as if to consul her.

"S-Sakura!"

The said girl whipped to her right to find Hinata barreling towards her. The shy girl slammed into the Haruno, wrapping her arms around her best friend and holding her tight. "I heard you n-needed to see me," she said, pulling back.

Sakura glanced over the girls shoulder to find Neji turning around and heading back into the side branch houses. "You've b-been crying," Hinata said, bringing Sakura's attention back her.

Sakura forced a grin, "Can every Hyuga really tell?"

The girl smiled, "It's o-obvious," she said, before motioning to the main branch house, "You n-need to talk, I c-can tell."

Sakura brushed away a few more tears that had started to surface, "Thank you, Hinata," she whispered, "Thank you so much."

Hinata, being the humble goddess she was, shook her head and grabbed her friend by the hand, "Let's g-go," she said, starting towards the building.

Sakura followed close behind, staring at the girls back. It'd been so long since they'd actually talked to each other, yet, within seconds, it was as if they were back in the Academy.

' **Minus the pig-nosed hippo,'** the voice growled out lowly inside Sakura's head. The said girl ignored it, though a small voice in the back of her mind agreed with her. Wait, never mind, it was actually the voice.

Damn, this was getting confusing.

"S-Sakura," Hinata stuttered out, "We're here." Sakura looked up to see the Hyuga gesturing to an open door. She blinked and nodded, quickly scampering inside. The girl quietly shut it behind them, before turning around and opening her arms.

"Let it out," she said. Hinata was as close to the pinkette as Ino was, though it never seemed that way on the outside. The lavender eyed girl was quite, and she never really gossiped with the others, but she was always there when Sakura needed help.

She also knew what she needed, and right now, she needed comfort.

Sakura's eyes went wide, before they slowly, slowly narrowed, and tears welled up in her eyes. A small ball of emotions crawled up her throat as she threw herself into Hinata's arms and sobbed her heart out.

* * *

For the first time ever, Sakura slept over at the Hyuga compound.

Most of the time, they always went over to Ino's place, or to her own house. And, every once in a while, to a classmates, but that was normally for a party. Anyways, she'd never been able to as a kid, it wasn't exactly supported by the Hyuga elders, and Sakura's own parents were afraid of her disrespecting or displeasing the elders.

Really, it was all about the elders.

But, with certain circumstances came certain situations, and Sakura falling asleep after she cried, gushed about everything, and used up half a box of tissues was one of them.

"Ko told your parents that you slept over," Hinata said that morning, handing Sakura a cup of tea. The pinkette thanked the girl and took it, taking a small sip. Her insides immediately turned to mush.

Hinata always made the best tea.

"I still c-can't believe I-Ino said that," the Hyuga said, shaking her head.

Sakura nodded in agreement, "Neither can I," she confessed.

"M-Maybe it'll b-blow over," Hinata tried.

"No," Sakura said, shaking her head and taking another drink from her tea, "It's Ino. She'll hold grudges as long as she has a reason to."

"Th-Then what would be her r-r-r-reason to have one against you?" Hinata asked, "All y-you did was exchange some w-words." Sakura pursed her lips. "You should just talk."

"What if I don't want to," Sakura snapped, slamming the cup down. Hinata jolted in surprise, her pale eyes glancing down at the ceramic dish before trailing back up to the Haruno's face. "She's arrogant," the green eyed girl continued softly, "All she cares about is nobility and Sasuke."

"Sakura," Hinata said, "You… I… Ino…," she trailed off, the rest of her sentence left to the breeze that was coming through the window.

Sakura got to her feet, "I'm going home," she said, "Sorry for bothering you."

"You d-didn't bother me, Sakura," Hinata protested, getting up as well, "You know you can always come to me for help."

"It can't be that way forever," Sakura whispered, more to herself than to her friend, "I need to be able to rely on myself and my own strengths."

"'A single leaf can't shade the ground,'" the Hyuga said, quoting Sandaime-sama, "'But an entire canopy of them can.'"

"And in order for that to happen," Sakura picked up, "Each leaf needs to be strong." Hinata frowned but stayed silent. "I'll see you at the Chunin Exams," Sakura continued, walking past the girl and clamping a hand down on her shoulder.

She made her way out of the Hyuga compound and down towards her house, her mind whirling the entire time. She'd need to do more ninjutsu training, along with medical jutsu, and taijutsu, and chakra control.

Speaking of chakra, she'd also need to expand her reserves, and maybe learn how to fight with low chakra levels. She didn't know much about the Exams, but fighting would definitely be a part of them, along with other things that would test their skills.

By the time Sakura got home, she already had a mental list of what she needed to do within the next week in order for her to prepare. She was ready to go up to her room and change into fresh clothes, then go head to train.

That plan was torches and thrown all the way to Kiri, though, since the moment she stepped foot in her house, her dad gathered her up in his arms and hugged her hard enough to make her eyeballs pop out of their sockets.

"Tou-san," Sakura choked out, "Can't breathe."

Kizashi let the girl go, but kept her at an arm's length away. He stared at her with what looked to be anger for a few seconds, "Young girl," he said, "What were you thinking, not telling us you were over at Hinata-san's until it was past midnight?"

Sakura frowned, "We were just training," she lied.

"Training?" he asked, "Don't you already have that with the team."

"It ends at three," she huffed out, "I still had lots of time."

He narrowed his eyes, "You get up at six am to go to that, Sakura. That's nine hours, isn't that enough?"

"No," Sakura said, "I only do spars, and chakra exercises, then weapon training and –"

Kizashi stood up, "What?" he snapped, his face hardening, "They're practically training you to be… to be…,"

"A shinobi," Sakura replied, "Yeah, I know." She brushed past him and headed towards the kitchen, where she knew her mom would be. At this hour, Mebuki would always be decorating the specialty cakes.

"Kaa-san," she said, pulling out her slip from her pouch.

"What is it, hon?" she asked, turning around.

"I need you to sign this," Sakura explained, handing it to her.

Mebuki quickly cleaned her hands and took the paper, her eyes scanning over the characters. "Chunin Exams," she said, "Kakashi-san believe your team is ready?"

"Chunin Exams?" Kizashi asked, walking in behind Sakura. The said girl forced herself to stay calm. He knew nothing about the shinobi lifestyle. "What's that?"

"Nothing," Sakura hissed.

Mebuki glanced from her daughter to her husband before sighing and picking up a pen, "He's the son of Konoha's White Fang," she said, "And he has his own name. I trust his judgement. Besides," she looked at Sakura and grinned, "If it's the San-Kamigami…"

Sakura gasped, "How do you know that?" she demanded.

"News travels as fast as sound," Mebuki said with a wink.

"Wait," Kizashi said, "What are the Chunin Exams. I think I should know before my daughter goes out and participates in them. And what's a San-Kamigami?"

"It's an exam to get to the next level of a shinobi," Sakura's mom explained, "It starts with a written test, then a survival test, then a finals brawl. The kids who do well pass and those who don't fail. It's hard to get nominated, too. Most people don't get chosen until they're around sixteen."

"Survival?!" Kizashi snapped in shock, his nose scrunching up, "I'm not having my daughter fight for her life against kids who are older than her!"

"Age doesn't mean anything," Sakura grunted out, her mind wandering back to Haku's face. The boy was far stronger than she was, the only reason she'd been able to… kill him, was because Naruto had already hurt him.

"It's really nothing, darling," Mebuki said, stepping forward and putting a hand on her husband's shoulder.

"She could die!" he snapped.

"That's what I signed up for!" Sakura retorted.

She rarely ever raised her voice at her father, but enough was enough. Unlike her mom, he was born a civilian and grew up as a civilian. Mebuki retired when she married him, and even then he didn't know much about what she did.

"That's what you signed me up for," she continued, pointing at him, then to her mother, "When I was five, and I asked you to enroll me in the Ninja Academy, you signed me up to become a shinobi; and that means risking my life for my village."

Kizashi's face went red. "Then undo it!" he yelled, "I won't tolerate the chance of you dying!"

"You can't just undo it, darling," Mebuki said, her tone changing to annoyance, "She already knows how to use weapons and chakra."

He crossed his arms, "Then she just doesn't use them."

Sakura pinched the bridge of her nose, "Tou-san," she explained, "Once you train your chakra, it shows. I'd look like a shinobi to enemy eyes. And if I suppressed it, my reserves would grow larger, which would make me look like a bigger threat."

Kizashi crouched down and gently grabbed Sakura by the shoulders, "It doesn't matter, blossom," he whispered, "You can just live a normal life."

"This is a normal life," Sakura growled, shrugging him off. He got to his feet and opened his mouth to shout at her, but was cut off by her words: "Fighting for Hokage-sama, taking jobs, killing people; it's all my life now!"

Kizashi stumbled back as if she'd hit him, shock evident on his face, "Killing people?" he asked, his voice barely audible.

Mebuki gasped and whirled her daughter around, "Already?" she whispered, "So the story was true."

"What story?" Kizashi demanded.

Sakura ignored him and shook her head, "It was Kakashi-sensei. I just… I didn't mean it, I just, it was a mistake," she rambled.

"You murdered someone?" her father asked.

Mebuki looked at him over Sakura's shoulder, her viridian eyes hardening into stone, "Don't you have to set up the shop?" It was more of an order than a suggestion, a single sentence that showed who wore the pants in the house.

The man grumbled out a few incoherent words but turned around, dragging his feet towards the door like a child. Once he was gone, Mebuki grabbed her daughter by the shoulders and looked her straight in the eye.

"How?" she asked.

Sakura dipped her head down and bit her lip. She really didn't want to talk about this. It was hard enough that the voice brought it up almost every night, but for her mother to consult her about it. That was even worse.

Not to mention hard to talk about.

"Kaa-san," Sakura muttered, "I...I stabbed him..."

"I know, hon," Mebuki said, "I know."

"Sasuke was just, he looked dead mom," she choked out, "And Naruto, he was so scared. And... and he was trying to hurt them. I had to. I, I just had to..."

"Speaking of Naruto," Mebuki pulled away and cupped her daughter's chin, "That boy he deals with a lot."

"I know," Sakura said. She could tell from all the looks he was given. In fact, the only civilians that seemed to like him were Takeshi and Tadashi, but, that was because she'd introduced him as a friend.

"I heard the San-Kamigami story," Mebuki said, "even though part of it was made up. Unlike Sasuke-san's dojutsu, Naruto's isn't tied to his DNA. Next time they go red, or whenever his pupils split, comfort him. Calm him down."

"Why?" Sakura asked.

"Because he's a danger to himself and to others when it happens," the Haruno explained, "And when it stops, he feels terrible about it. He can't control it, yet."

Sakura frowned, "Can he control it in the future?"

Mebuki nodded, "But only if you and Sasuke-san help. He needs friends."

Sakura gave her a small, hesitant smile, "Okay, Kaa-san."

Mebuki smiled and kissed her daughters forehead, "Go clean yourself up and meet with your team." Sakura nodded and hugged her mom one more time before padding up the stairs.


	13. A New Goal: The Start of a Legacy

**I'm so, so sorry! Schools been a bitch lately and I haven't been able to keep up. I had the chapter done, but chapter fourteen was being an ass, so I had to wait until it was done to post this. Then I had to wait until today, then I had chess, and, damn it, life sucks.**

 **Also, in case you didn't notice, there's been a bit of change. Somehow, the KG came up somehow even when I didn't want it, but I'd been on a roll, so I had looked it over. It's back to the way it was supposed to be now. Anyways, I'll be trying - attempting - to keep up.**

 **It'll still be every other Thursday, as to give me time with my new schedule, but you can sure as hell count on me to make sure this fanfic gets finished. With love ~Koi**

* * *

Sakura looked down at the storage scroll in front of her and sighed. "I have the clothes, the kunai, the canteens, the solider pills, the exploding tags, the medic kit, and the trap wire," she whispered to herself, mentally checking off each of them as she pulled them from a shopping bag and laid them down on the floor.

She'd nabbed most of them from her basement, where her mother kept all of her old weapons. Most of the stuff was in good condition, though the exploding tags were a little worn and the kunai had needed to be sharpened.

It didn't matter, though.

She had all the stuff she needed for the survival part of the Chunin Exams. The way her mother had talked about it, it was right after the written test, which meant they weren't supposed to have anything on them.

But, she couldn't be careless. The Exams were full of life or death situations, and she wasn't going to risk getting herself or the boys killed. Naruto needed to become Hokage, and Sasuke… he needed his revenge.

Sakura grabbed the storage scroll she'd nabbed from the basement and started to place all her materials inside. She put the clothes in last – a dark green version of her mock neck and her apron-skirt, two pairs of black cargo pants, two belts, and two dark green muscle shits.

The Haruno didn't want anything to ruin them.

A flash of skin and people would notice them. There was a reason she picked the colors she did; they blended in with the foliage and the shadows it cast. She quickly folded up the clothing and put them in the scroll, rolling it up and placing it in her weapons pouch.

Sakura went over to her closet and pulled on a light pink mock neck that was the same shade as her apron-skirt. She'd thrown the red one, the one given to her as a graduation present, at Ino, who also happened to be the one who'd given it to her.

She wasn't exactly going to ask for it back, that'd be too awkward, but she wasn't going to wear her old dresses. Those weren't exactly easy to fight in, and she never knew when the team would have time to change.

 _If_ they had time to change. This was their first time competing in the Chunin Exams, and even if they asked people who had gone through it before, it was bound to be different. Only idiots would re-use the exact same test.

Then everyone would be able to pass it.

The pinkette checked her weapons pouch and her pocket watch before taking her hitai ate off her skirt flap. She grabbed its original cloth from around her thigh bandages and put it back on. Sakura stared down at the Konoha symbol etched into the metal, tracing it with her fingers.

It was proof she was a kunoichi, that she had passed the genin exam. And within the next hour, she'd be starting the Chunin Exams. Sakura smiled and tied the hitai ate around her forehead, pulling the knot tight.

She turned to her mirror and stared at her reflection. Raising her arms up, she posed a bit. The action itself felt silly, something that Ino would do. Still… Sakura turned a bit and smile, winking a bit to make herself look cuter.

She did look good. Maybe if she spent a little longer on her hair in the mornings, made it look a little glossier, then boys might start to notice her. Sasuke might notice her. Maybe he'd even…

"Sakura," Mebuki shouted from the stairs, startling the said girl. The Haruno dropped her arms and whirled around, her face burning.

"What?" she called down hesitantly.

She really hoped no one saw her. Even though her dad always knocked before entering her room, and her mom was obviously downstairs, there was a still a possibility that someone knew what she was doing.

She heard her mother huff. Sakura knew Mebuki hated calling people from across the house. In fact, she only saved it for occasions like right now, when someone was at the door and she couldn't leave without looking disrespectful.

"You're teammate is here!" Mebuki yelled.

Sakura's eyes widened. There was no way in hell that Sasuke would pick her up, in fact, she'd agreed he'd be the last stop since the Uchiha compound was along the route to the Academy, where they'd be taking the test.

Besides, he wasn't that close with her. And even then, it wasn't his style. He'd probably standing in the street, out of view, and send a kunai with a note through her window. Uchiha Sasuke would never show up at anyone's door willingly, let alone Sakura's.

He hated social situations after all, not to mention Ino was almost always at the pinkette's house, so there was a big chance he'd end up running into her. And running into Yamanaka Ino was never on Sasuke's to-do list.

So that meant that the person at the door had to be…

Sakura raced to her bedroom door, throwing at open and sprinted down the stairs. She took them three at a time, something she wouldn't advise to anybody who wanted to keep their bones intact, and jumped the entire landing.

She hit the floor with a bang and ran over towards the front door, where her mother and Naruto stood. Sakura sent him a half-force, half-genuine smile. She didn't feel bad about him being here at all. Her mom had some weird fascination with the boy, after all.

When her father left, she'd always ask how he was doing. But that was when her dad was _gone_ , and right now, she didn't know if he was here or not.

Sakura greeted the Uzumaki with a brief wave before pulling her mom aside, "Kaa-san," she said, "Did Tou-san see him?"

Mebuki shook her head, a small twinkle in her eye. "No, hon," she said softly, "he didn't. And I made _sure_ to talk to him last night about it."

Sakura frowned, "How do you know he listened?" she asked.

A sly smile made its way up her mother's face, "He always listens when we –" Sakura cut her off by throwing her hands over Mebuki's mouth and staring her in the eye for a few seconds.

The green eyed girl turned around and smiled at Naruto, "Hey," she said.

He grinned, "Hey."

Mebuki smiled, her eyes darting between the two. A few awkward seconds passed before her mother clapped her hands together and spoke again. "I'm guessing at this point nether of you have eaten breakfast," she said, looking at them both for a bit, "so…"

She pulled out what looked to be a mini tart filled with sausage, cheese, eggs, and a bit of gravy. They were wrapped up so nothing spilled, but Sakura could see, and smell, them from where she stood.

"Stole this from the oven a while ago," Mebuki said with a wink, "They're a bit cold, but they'll do. Gotta eat if ya wanna fight."

Naruto's face lit up like a Christmas tree, "Really, dattebayo?!" he asked.

Sakura knew for a fact that he didn't get things often. Hokage-sama would give him things for his birthday and for holidays, and Iruka-sensei would treat him to ramen every once in a while, but that was that.

Most of the stuff he had to get for everyday life was sold to him at an unreasonable price; the money the orphanage lent him couldn't keep up. Then again, even they skimped out a bit. Sakura knew what Sasuke lived like; Naruto's lifestyle should have been like that, too.

Well, minus the compound and Uchiha family house.

Mebuki nodded and handed it to the Uzumaki, "If you ever need anything," she said, looking him in the eye, "then come over. Same to Uchiha-san as well." Sakura smiled. Her mother was just too motherly sometimes.

Maybe it was because she grew up knowing she'd be a kunoichi, so she didn't really have time to bond with her own parents. Then again, Sakura found time in her schedule, so maybe Mebuki had as well.

"And speaking of Uchiha-san," the Haruno held up a bag, "There's one for him, too."

Sakura giggled a bit and took both the bag and her own breakfast, "Thanks mom."

Mebuki waved her daughters words off, "Eh, it was nothing," she said, "Now, go and beat the other genin to a bloody pulp. And don't die while you're at it, I wouldn't like that too much." The blond sent Sakura and Naruto off, smiling the entire time.

"Your mom's really cool, 'ttebayo," Naruto said as they made their way to Sasuke's house.

Sakura shrugged, "She was a ninja," the pinkette replied, "She knows how we work."

"Still, 'ttebayo," he said, "She's awesome."

The rest of the way to the Uchiha compound was traveled in silence, the only sound being that of nearby civilians as they made their way through their daily routines. Sakura glanced around her and found that, once again, people were glaring at Naruto.

She watched as women pulled their children aside and whispered for them to never go near the blond. A few shopkeepers flipped their signs from 'open' to 'closed.' One man, who looked to be well over his expiration date, even spat at Naruto's feet, which earned him a glare from Sakura.

"You're a bastard," she said, being as blunt as possible.

He narrowed his eyes and took a step towards her, "You shouldn't be with him, ojou-chan, he's dangerous. If it weren't for him, you wouldn't be acting rude towards an innocent jiji."

Sakura whipped out a kunai and took a step forward.

"Even if he wasn't around," Sakura growled, holding the knife so it gleamed in the sun, "I'd still be rude towards you. You're a disgrace to any and all elders that live in this village."

She left him at that, pocketing her weapon and grabbing Naruto by the wrist.

"Come on," she hissed, "Let's go." She tugged him after her, going at a pace that had him stumbling over his own two feet.

"You'll regret this," a shop owner called, "Once he hurts you, you'll understand."

"An oni!" a kid no older than ten shouted, pointing straight at Naruto. The said boy was hanging his head and biting his lip. "Mama told me that!"

"He's a demon fox!" his mother corrected, pushing her child behind her as she took a step closer, which earned a few gasps and muttered from the passersby who had stopped to watch.

"And you're one as well if you stick with him."

Sakura glanced around her and smiled, "I like to think of him as a Kamigami," she said, raising her voice so people around her could hear. A few civilian's eyes went wide. So it'd spread that far already.

"And I believe I am one, as well."

She turned around and pulled Naruto around a corner and into the Uchiha district, only to bump into Sasuke, who was waiting there for them both. "A Kamigami?" he asked, raising an eyebrow

Sakura blushed a little, "I got caught up in the moment."

He sighed but didn't keep the topic for long.

"We'll go through the back way," he said, "That way your moment won't be ruined."

Sakura rubbed the back of her head and muttered a thanks. "And, Naruto," the Uchiha continued, surprising both Sakura and the said boy by using his real name.

"Keep your head up," Sasuke said, "Demon and proud."

A small grin broke out across Naruto's face, "Demon and proud, 'ttebayo."

* * *

Kakashi-sensei jumped down from the Academy's sign, landing right in front of his team. He glanced at each of them for a few seconds, before sighing and running a hand through his hair, "All of you showed."

Sakura scoffed, "Of course."

Naruto nodded, "Wouldn't miss it for the world, dattebayo!"

"Hn," Sasuke grunted out, a small smirk playing on his lips.

Kakashi-sensei laughed, "You've all changed, too" he said. Sakura furrowed her eyebrows a little. "You've warmed up to each other. You've matured. You've become more confident in yourselves and in your abilities."

"Aw, shucks, sensei," Naruto said, "You don't have to compliment us so much, 'ttebayo."

Sakura smacked him upside the head, though her blow was more playful than anything.

"I'm proud of you three," Kakashi-sensei continued, "And I have no doubts that you'll all pass." And with that, he disappeared in a swirl of leaves.

Sasuke shook his head, "Flashy as always," he grunted out. Sakura giggled at his words. He glanced over to her and smiled a bit.

Naruto leaned towards the building, a hand cupped over his ear.

Sakura had learned over the course of her time with him that he had better senses than almost everyone on the team, though Kakashi-sensei's sense of smell was better than all three of theirs combined.

"Everyone's loud, 'ttebayo" the whiskered boy said, "I can hear it from here."

"A commotion?" Sakura asked. "What're they saying?"

The Uzumaki shook his head, "I can't tell, dattebayo, too many voices." He leaned away from the building and turned to Sasuke, "What do we do, 'ttebayo?"

He looked at Naruto like he'd turned into the Kyubi no Yonko or something, "Me?" the Uchiha asked, baffled.

Naruto rolled his eyes, "You're the smart one," he said.

Sakura faced him and raised an eyebrow. "Er, the tactical one, 'ttebayo?" he tried. Sakura puffed out her cheeks like a squirrel and huffed. Sasuke smirked a bit. "The… good… looking one?"

Sakura gave up trying to torment him. "You mean he's the better leader," Sakura tried, forcing down a few giggles.

"Yeah, 'ttebayo," he said with a nod, "that. So, teme, what do we do, 'ttebayo."

Sasuke glanced back to the door, then to the Academy's wall.

"It's best we avoid the crowd," he said, starting towards the building. He glanced over his shoulder and smirked, "Anyone remember how to climb without their hands?"

Sakura blinked, confused for a few seconds, before a sly smile made its way up her lips. Beside her, Naruto broke out into a full grin. "Race ya!" he shouted, sprinting to the wall.

"Oi!" Sasuke shouted, racing after him.

Their rivalry would never get old.

Sakura erupted into laughter and ran behind them, pumping her legs as hard as she could. She wasn't the fastest of the group, that title belonged to Sasuke, but she wasn't the slowest, ether.

The pinkette closed in on Naruto, passing him up slightly.

In front of her, Sasuke made contact with the wall. Less than a half meter up, he stuck his foot on the ledge of a window and pushed himself forward. "No hands!" Naruto yelled, close behind.

Sakura continued up the stone after the Uchiha, grabbing the same window sill he did and hoisting herself up higher. "Sakura-chan!" Naruto whinnied, "No cheating, 'ttebayo!"

"Shinobi," Sasuke said, "Remember?" Sakura reached up and grabbed a hold of his shirt, tugging him down.

"And we always play dirty," she added with a wink, running past him.

He growled and sprinted after, Naruto right next to him. The Haruno passed the second floor window, pressing her foot onto the sill like Sasuke had done and pushing forward.

Sakura felt pride swell in her chest.

She wasn't watching their backs. She was worth something, she had to be. Sasuke was the genius who knew everything, and Naruto was the ninja that grew by leaps and bounds.

And she was in front of them, winning a race.

As she reached up to grip the third levels window, two hands reached out and grabbed her wrists. She glanced at her sides to find teammates. She blinked, then grinned. She swung her arms together, and Naruto and Sasuke followed.

They smacked into each other, their lips connecting.

Both of them immediately lost their concentration, pushing away from each other as they fell to the earth.

Sasuke hit the ground and rolled over on his side, hacking and coughing.

Naruto spat on the grass multiple times and tried to wipe off his tongue.

It was true entertainment.

Sakura couldn't control her giggles as she yanked open the window and threw herself inside. Righting her position, she took a few seconds to get used to standing upright again before poking her head out the window and waving down at the boys.

"Having fun?" she sang through her laughter.

Sasuke's head shot up so fast that it was a miracle he didn't break his neck.

"Why you conniving little bitch," he growled, stalking towards the wall. Naruto hissed out a low 'dattebayo' and followed right after.

Sasuke crawled through the window and into the hallway. As soon as he straightened, Sakura realized that he was at least half a head taller than her.

Gulping, Sakura backed away from the boy, "Now, now," she said.

In less than two strides, he was towering in front of her.

Grabbing her arm, the Uchiha tugged her into a headlock and dug his fist into the top of her skull. "Ita!" Sakura yelled out in pain.

He kept the position until Naruto popped in.

Sakura wiggled out of Sasuke's arms and scuttled away from him, smoothing down her hair. She hissed at him a bit and he rolled his eyes in response. Naruto ignored them and continued down the hall.

"Usuratonkachi," Sasuke said, "Where are you going."

Naruto turned around and grinned.

Sakura knew that grin. It was the same one he'd thrown on their first day as a team when he'd lodged an eraser full of chalk in the doorway. That grin meant he'd be doing something stupid.

And something that'd definitely give Sakura a memory she'd never remember.

Naruto held his fingers up in familiar a cross sign that the Haruno knew all too well. He whispered the name of his jutsu and made a kage bunshin. It poofed into place beside him and leaned its head towards its creator.

Naruto cupped a hand around his mouth and bent down to speak into the bunshin's ear. The chakra clone nodded at its original and scampered towards the stairwell. It turned around and looked at Naruto. The blond grinned once more and held up a thumb.

"Do it," he whispered. The clone giggled a bit and headed down the stairs.

"Naruto," Sakura started, only to be cut off by the said boy.

"Shhh," he said, holding a finger to his lips. Sakura immediately shut up. Naruto smiled again and motioned for his teammates to come forwards.

Sakura nodded and followed, poking her head into the stairwell.

Sasuke was close behind, mumbling a few things under his breath. She watched with the boys as Naruto's bunshin made it way towards the doorway the lead to the second floor.

"Commence Operation Annoy the Completion," Naruto ordered with a whisper.

The bunshin nodded once again and opened the door.

"Oi, 'ttebayo," it called.

Every head in the second floor hallway snapped towards it. Naruto held up a hand sign and whistped a quick 'kai.' Sakura glanced up at the marker and watched in amazement as it changed from a three to a two.

She looked over towards the window and found a small, blond strand of hair wedged in the window. So that's why it took his so long; he was checking out what the commotion was.

' **The kids smarter than he looks,'** the voice commented. Sakura scowled and told it to shut up. She turned her attention back to Naruto's kage bunshin.

Everyone was staring at it. Some with annoyance and some with confusion. Sakura recognized the rest of her graduation class, along with team Gai. Not a single one of them was looking at the marker.

The bunshin grinned cheekily and stuck its thumb out behind it, "The third floors up here."

Beside her, Naruto held out his hands for high fives. Both Sasuke and Sakura shared a look of amusement and smacked their open palms down onto Naruto's. The boys clone retreaded back up the stairs and into the hallway before disappearing with a pop.

"Let's do this," Sakura whispered.

Naruto nodded. "Yeah, 'ttebayo."

"We'll win," Sasuke said, "And we'll become Chunin."


	14. The Test Begins: Meet the Sand Siblings

**Happy New Year! Sorry for the wait. I have a poll up on my page for a one-shot similar to Fading Petals: Sasuke, go check it out and vote. I hope you all had a Happy Holidays, and if you don't celebrate any of that... I hope you had fun laughing at all the crazy stuff my fellow whites did this season. XD! ~ Koi**

* * *

Sakura stared at the people around her, silently taking in their faces and clothing.

It was something simple that Kakashi-sensei had taught her and Sasuke when Naruto sent an ANBU with news of his cold. How he managed to rope one of the most elite shinobi in Konoha to deliver a disposable chopstick wrapper with chibi foxes doodled on the ends still confused them all.

She glanced over to a Suna group of Suna shinobi and raked her eyes over the tallest suit.

How a person dressed would give away their fighting style, along with the kind of jutsu they used. For instance, he wasn't big into taijutsu because his clothes didn't fit in the right places. But the gloves he wore showed that he did, in fact, use his hands a lot. Weapons, maybe?

She turned her gaze towards his face, seizing up the lines that covered most of his features.

War paint; something noblemen mainly wore. He was of high status. Probably related to someone on the council. Sakura stared at him for a few more seconds before turning to the girl he stood with.

She wasn't a lover, Sakura understood that instantly.

The way she held herself, straight back, smug smile, raised eyebrows. Not to mention she was beautiful, and Sakura was she the girl knew it. A kunoichi of her standard wouldn't go for a guy wearing 'make-up.'

Sakura stared at the girls' clothing.

Off the shoulder… she constant use of her arms. And the skirt, there wasn't much movement available. She wouldn't be able to leap or kick out' she didn't use her legs much.

The girl shifted a bit and Sakura had to force down a grin.

A tessen; strapped to her back.

Sakura elbowed Sasuke, who had been looking at some Oto nin, in the side. He hissed in pain and turned towards her.

"What?" the Uchiha asked.

He was glaring at her, but it wasn't the same look he used on his fangirls; Kakashi-sensei had told him to stop using that on his teammates and close friends. So he just used a casual glare instead.

It was kind of funny, actually.

His lip jutted out in the smallest of pouts and his eyelids were barely lidded. Sakura glanced up into his eyes and noticed exactly how bright they were. The onyx orbs were nothing like the pools of charcoal he had when they'd first graduated.

Sasuke had come so far.

He was starting to express emotion, something that somehow lit up Sakura's world. Along with Naruto and Kakashi-sensei, Sasuke made up her entire world.

Her parents and Hinata, did too, of course, but Sakura was starting to find that she was spending more and more time with the quite Hyuga and her teammates then her own family.

She didn't mind, though. They were her light, after all.

Uzumaki Naruto was like a little brother. He brought a smile to her face every single day.

Hyuga Hinata was almost like a twin. The girl knew everything about Sakura, from what she was thinking to what she was secretly feeling.

Hatake Kakashi-sensei was like a big brother, one who joked around and was slightly perverted, but still cared for everyone.

And Uchiha Sasuke... Sakura didn't really know his place in the 'family.' But he made her feel and he made her think. He didn't speak often, but he was doing better socially than before. You just had to know his signs. And his eyes.

It was his eyes that explained everything about his mood. And he was currently annoyed as hell.

Sakura broke his gaze, knowing if she stared any longer she wouldn't be able to ever look away, and jutted her chin out towards the blond kunoichi she'd been watching seconds before.

"Futon user," she said, lowering her voice so it was barely audible. Sasuke could still hear it, though, seeing as a slow smirk worked its way onto its lips. Their teammate heard it, too.

Naruto looked up from the flashcards he'd been rifling through.

The poor boy had been quizzing himself for days ever since Sakura let it slip that the first test was a written exam. He'd never been good with schoolwork in the Academy, after all.

And it wasn't just because he never paid attention. The simple idea of having the calculate a math problem or recall a certain date and event that had marked itself in Konoha's history sent the blond into hysterics.

Others simply called him an idiot, but Sakura saw it as fear.

She knew that Hokage-sama paid for Naruto's apartment and the ANBU that watched over him. And so, she figured out that Naruto was just afraid that he wouldn't be smart enough for them. He feared the idea of letting Sarutobi-sama and Iruka-sensei down.

"Really, 'ttebayo?" Naruto asked.

"See for yourself, dobe," Sasuke grunted out softly, shifting to the side to give the blond a better view. The said boy tilted his head to the right ever so slightly and moved his eyes to the corners of their sockets.

"She probably doesn't use hand signs," Sakura whispered.

"You mean she pushes chakra through her tessen?" Sasuke asked, looking unconvinced.

"Hey," Naruto said, "Do you see the guy next to her."

"Which one?" Sakura asked.

"The one with the make-up," the Uzumaki said.

"Again," Sasuke hissed, "Which one?"

Sakura forced down a giggle as Naruto scowled and muttered a few profanities. Sasuke replied with some more insults until the two were bickering in the quietist voices she'd ever heard them use.

Suddenly, the red haired kid snapped his head towards them. His swept his eyes over all three of the genin before turned his entire body in their direction and walking over.

The girl with him jolted suddenly and sent a frightful glance to the kid next to her. He whispered something and started after the boy. The Futon user followed close behind.

The boy that'd been approaching the group walked right to Naruto, sizing the blond up. He turned his attention to Sasuke, who had stepped forward to cover Sakura slightly. He glared down at the midget, hatred burning in his black orbs.

The redheads mouth twitched down a bit before he looked over to Sakura. The said girl felt a wave of cold rush through her veins. There wasn't anything natural about him. Nothing at all.

"What's your name?" the boy asked, turning back to look at Sasuke.

"Gaara," the girl hissed as she came up behind him. He glanced back at her and she stiffened, a bead of sweat forming on the side of her face. "Umm, who are they?"

Sakura tried to take a step forward, only for Sasuke to grab her wrist. He shot her a look of caution and she stopped. "I'm Haruno Sakura," she said, looking her in the eye. "You?"

"Temari," she replied, "This is Kankuro and… Gaara."

Sakura nodded slowly, "The blond is Uzumaki Naruto, I'm sorry in advance for everything," that earned a shout of protest from the whiskered kid, "And the brooding hunk is Uchiha Sasuke."

Sasuke immediately choked on his spit, snapping his head to the side to stare at the said girl. His mouth opened and closed like a fish and Sakura noticed the tips of his ears turned a slight pink.

Kankuro snorted, Temari raised an eyebrow, and Gaara remained passive.

And Naruto smacked his hand on his knee, howling with laughter. Any and all attention that hadn't been on them suddenly turned towards the group of six.

Across the room, Ino scowled. Beside her, Shikamaru sighed and shook his head, and Choji munched on some chips.

Hinata and Shino glanced at each other while Kiba was mimicking Naruto's behavior. The Inuzuka's heightened senses let him hear every word of Sakura's playful jab.

Neji was scowling over at her while TenTen giggled. Lee was in the corner doing some push-ups and seemed totally oblivious to everything.

"Sakura-chan," Naruto gasped out when he finally caught his breath, "How'd ya do that, 'ttebayo?"

Sasuke seemed to finally find his words and ripped his hand off of Sakura's wrist like it was some kind of blazing hot iron. "What the hell?" he asked.

Sakura giggled and patted his shoulder, "Sorry, sorry," she said, "I just wanted to…" she collapsed into a fit of laughter, having to hold onto Sasuke in order to keep herself off the floor, "Hahahaha."

"Whatever," he huffed out, "Just try not to act like your blond friend anymore."

Sakura bristled at the comment and reached towards his skull, smacking him upside the head. Kankuro snorted again and Temari barked out a laugh at the look on the Uchiha's face.

Naruto howled once more, "She got ya good, teme." Sakura leaned over and bopped him on the head as well.

"Oww," he whinnied, "What was that for, dattebayo?!"

Sakura glanced over to the three Suna genin and inwardly smiled. They were looking like casual people to them; simple genin that probably wouldn't pass the test.

Temari opened her mouth to start some more conversation, only to be cut off as fifteen proctors and a man with two parallel scars on his face walked in.

Any and all chatter that was floating around the classroom stopped within seconds.

The scarred man walked up to the podium in the front of the room. He raked his eyes across every kid that was present and smirked.

"All the girls need to head to the front left corner," he snapped, slamming his hand down on the wood.

Silence.

Sakura glanced around the room. Every kunoichi, including her, was frozen, not moving an inch. They were all too scared to actually step forward and find their seats. She didn't blame them, though.

The scarred jonin's – he had to be a jonin, there was no way a chunin could be that frightening – scowl deepened as a minute passed and no one moved.

One of the other proctors gulped and turned to the person standing next to him, whispering something. The scarred man whipped his head to the side and cleared his throat. The two men straightened up and went quite.

The pinkette turned to stare at the man standing at the podium with wide eyes. He didn't even raise an arm. The said man turned back towards the genin in the room and opened his mouth: "Do I have to repeat myself?"

More silence.

Sakura watched as his face hardened. "All those who can bear a child need to report to the front left corner of this classroom and sit their scrawny little asses down in a seat!" he yelled.

Sakura flinched.

She glanced back at Sasuke and Naruto, who each gave her a reassuring – albeit frightened – nod, before walking towards where the man had told them to go. Temari did the same, throwing another insult at Kankuro and sending Gaara a weary gaze.

"The two remaining shinobi on their teams need to find another place to sit," the man ordered, not having calmed down in the slightest, "You're not allowed to be in the same section. Is that clear?"

He got a few mutters in response. "I asked if that was clear you low ranked maggots!" he roared. Everyone in the room straightened up and screamed a yes before scrambling to find their seats.

A minute hadn't even passed before the man spoke again, "My name is Morino Ibiki," he said, "And I'll be your examiner today."

Sakura looked around at the kids sitting near her. All the other Konoha shinobi had flocked towards the back of their section, so she was surrounded by foreign nin.

"Great," she muttered to herself, sinking lower in her seat. That meant if there was any questions on Konoha then they'd all turn to cheat off her.

The Oto kunoichi next to her smirked and skootched closer to the pinkette. "Are you scared?" she whispered.

Sakura turned to look at her and raised her chin up, "Not in the least," the Haruno replied. The Oto kunoichi raised an eyebrow but said nothing.

"You will answer questions one through nine within the allotted time without cheating," Morino-san continued, motioning for the other proctors to pass out the papers.

Sakura turned in her seat to find Sasuke and Naruto. The former quickly caught her gaze and nodded. The green eyes genin smirked and nodded back.

"Anyone caught doing so more than three times will be kicked out."

Sakura scanned the room to find Naruto in the corner across from her, seating near the door on the other side of the room.

He was still looking over his flashcards, muttering things to himself. After a few seconds of watching him Sakura turned her head back to Morino-san.

Naruto would be fine. He'd never cheat, that was against everything he stood for. Whatever that was.

"When you are done flip your paper over and put your pencil down," Morino-san said, "I will personally inform you question tens contents when everyone it done. You may begin."

Sakura grabbed the paper in front of her and snatched up her pencil, staring at the first question.

Decipher the following Morse code and translate it into Kiri's character/number code used for B-rank missions.

\- ... . / ... ... .. .-. / .. ... / -.-. .- -. -. - -. .-.-.- / .. / .-. . .-. . .- - / - ... . / ... ... .. .-. / .. ... / -.-. .- -. -. - -.

Sakura bit back a groan. Great. Just great.

She sighed and started to translate the dots and dashes. An hour to do ten questions? It'd take her at least fifteen minutes to just do this one! She despised codes. They were an absolute pain to use, and Kiri's code was the worst.

They used a combination of numbers and kanji, both of which she hated with a passion.

Sakura grumbled through the problem and was about to start the second when one of the proctors smacked his clipboard on his knee, "Three seventy," he called, "Your out. Take your teammates with."

The pinkette turned to stare at the boy that had gotten up. He looked about ready to start shouting, but a look from Morino-san shut him up. Sakura gulped and glanced at Sasuke.

Within a second he'd felt her eyes on him and turned to face her. The Uchiha kept her gaze for a bit, nodded, and then looked back down at his paper. Sakura bit her lip. Well, he'd be no help.

Sakura started on the second question, which had to do with the history of Suna. She blew past it, along with the third and fourth, but got stuck on number five, which had to do with angles of kunai and shuriken.

She managed to finish it and blazed through the rest. Twenty minutes were left, and she was already halfway through question nine.

' _Maybe I overthought it,'_ Sakura thought to herself.

The voice snorted, **'Don't jinx yourself, kid.'**

Suddenly, a chair scraped against the floor, and a Suna shinobi – Kankuro, if Sakura remember correctly – got up. "I gotta piss," he deadpanned. Across the room, Naruto bit back a snort.

Morino-san scowled and motioned for a proctor to follow the boy out. A minute after he left, the room returned to normal. But not for long.

More and more genin were eliminated, each dragging their team along with them. Feet shuffled across the floor every other minute, dragging their owners with them towards the door.

The girl next to Hinata collapsed out of her seat, taking both the Hyuga's and her own paper with her. Hinata squealed and jumped back.

Morino-san grinned and stomped over towards the fallen kunoichi, poking her with the tip of his boot.

"Passed out," he grumbled, as if he was disappointed, "Hyuga, grab your paper."

Hinata nodded and scooped one of the sheets, stepping on the other and scuffing the writing on it. Morino-san grabbed the remaining test and crumpled it up into a ball, tossing it over into the trash can.

Hinata set her paper down and started to erase near the top of the sheet. Sakura strained her neck slightly to look at it, only to find Hinata wasn't erasing a question answer. She was getting rid of a name.

' _She took the other girls paper,'_ Sakura realized.

' **Smart,'** the voice commented, **'Must've used her poisons.'**

 _Hinata_ was cheating. Hinata was _cheating_. Sakura's eyes went wide. Of course. This wasn't to test their knowledge, that'd be too easy. No wonder all the questions were harder than usual.

They had to cheat. Sakura bit back a grin.

This would be fun.

* * *

 **Note, the Morse code says 'The ship is cannon. I repeat, the ship is cannon.' ~Koi**


	15. Fear and Terror: The Forest of Death

**Okay, so I just looked a the date and was like 'shit! I haven't updated at _all_ since December!' So, in return, I give you chapter fifteen and my humbles of apologies...and some virtual cookies, if that helps in any way. Moving on! I still have the poll up for the addition to Fading Petals: Sasuke, so you should totally go check it out on my profile. **

**Also, my school friend - going by _Heime the Elephant _ since she doesn't have an FF account - is Beta-ing me, but it'll take a while for us to get through the chapters, so just have patience. Anyways, I hope you enjoy this chapter. Have a nice day/night/whatever-the-heck-your-timezone's-spat-out-on-you and don't forget to review. Reviewing gives me Koi Points! Koi Points are my energy source, much like coffee, except COFFEE IS DIGUSTING (IT'S A SIN, I KNOW)! ~Koi (the breaker of rules and lover of hot cocoa and apple cider)**

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"Welcome," Mitarashi Anko said with a flourish, giving the entirety of the group a big glimpse of her cleavage, "To training ground forty four."

From inside the fence, something screeched in response. Anko slammed her hand against the links of metal and yelled for whatever it was to shut up.

"As I was saying," she continued, "You'll get a Heaven scroll or an Earth scroll when you walk through that tent. You've all signed your wavers?" She didn't wait for a response. "Good," Anko chirped, "Now, when you enter, you'll have seventy two hours, or three days for all you nimrods out there in the crowd, to get the other scroll and make it to the tower in the center of this forest with both. And don't you dare open them before you get there, or I'll sick my pets on you."

Beside Sakura, Naruto gulped and clutched onto Sasuke's arm. The boy twitched and looked down slowly, settling a glare on the boy. Naruto let go and grabbed onto Sakura instead.

The said girl sighed and shook her head. "Stop acting like a baby," she whispered, "You're Naruto, the guy who helped scare those villagers enough to give us our name."

"I know, 'ttebayo" Naruto whinnied, "But it's _scary_."

"How?" Sasuke asked.

"Because _Shino's drooling_!" Naruto snapped, pointing at the said kid, "Who _knows_ what kind of bugs are in that place."

* * *

Within five minutes of getting their scroll, team seven had been blindfolded by a giddy Anko and dragged over towards their gate ("Can't have you little ones finding out where everyone is, can I~?" "You're crazy, lady." "Can it, Uchiha!").

The guard nearest to them had raised an eyebrow at their squalling, and when Anko dropped the genin on their butts in front of him, Naruto had shot him his best grin. The poor Jonin looked like he'd seen a ghost.

"Red-Haired Habanero," he'd muttered, shuddering a bit afterwards. Whatever the hell that meant.

Sakura got up and dusted her apron-skirt off. She pulled out the scroll and unsealed all the materials she packed away in preparation. "We've already registered," she said, "And it starts in five minutes, you can't get rid of us."

The jonin looked her dead in the eye, then glanced to Naruto, "You two related?" he asked.

Sasuke snorted and Sakura blushed. Naruto's grin grew wider, "Sure," he said.

The Haruno smacked him upside the head.

"Turn around," she hissed to the older shinobi, shoving the boys clothes towards them. He rolled his eyes and faced the fence. Naruto and Sasuke snatched up the darker versions shirts and shorts, yanking their tops off and throwing them on.

They'd seen each other half naked, or three-quarters naked, if you counted the boys getting glimpses of Sakura in her bindings and Sakura accidentally catching hem in their boxers; they could handle watching each other change.

At least, Sakura could. The boys on the other hand…

Sakura peeled off her shirt and Naruto whipped around to stare at the tree line. Sasuke's eyes darted to the side, but when the pinkette pulled her new top over her head, his eyes slipped back.

Naruto glanced behind him and growled, yanking Sasuke around. Both boys switched out their pants and Sakura pulled on a black apron-skirt identical to the one she was wearing.

"Okay," Sasuke said, re-setting his kunai pouch. He handed his and Naruto's clothes over to Sakura, who sealed them up and handed over everyone's extra weapons. She rolled the scroll up and shoved it back into her pouch. "We'll head straight off towards the genin to the left of us," the Uchiha finished up once she was done.

Sakura nodded. That made perfect sense. "We can intercept them," she added, "maybe get the Earth scroll."

"And afterwards we'll head straight, 'ttebayo?" Naruto asked.

Sasuke smirked, "You're catching on, Usuratonkachi." Naruto huffed and stuck out his tongue.

"Thirty seconds," the jonin warned.

Sasuke looked Sakura and Naruto dead in the eye, "Pocket watch," he said.

Naruto smiled, "Of course, 'ttebayo," he replied, "We need to know the time, after all."

Sakura forced down a snicker. She reached over and grasped them both by the shoulder. "Remember," she whispered, "We have two gods."

"And a goddess," Sasuke corrected.

Sakura blushed.

A shrill whistle spread through the air, signaling that it was time to let the contestants in. The jonin reached out and yanked the gate open.

The genin didn't even waste a second before they sprinted in, taking to the trees. Sasuke ran up a trunk, Naruto grabbed onto a low branch, and Sasuke jumped up into the tree tops, enhancing his muscles with chakra.

They had to make a quick confrontation. Get in, get the scroll – even if it was the wrong one – and get out.

Sakura swerved to the right, following behind Naruto. Sasuke popped up a few branches to get a better look of their surroundings.

If they started to overthink the situation then everything would become too complicated. They needed to be simple. No trading, no alliances, and no assumptions. They'd stay on their guard until they reached the end.

Naruto skidded to a stop on his branch, Sakura close behind. Sasuke dropped down onto the same limb, readying himself in a crouch.

"Action plan?" Sakura whispered, staring down at the genin in front of them.

They were a Kusa team, one of the only two that had made it through the first round. The boys each had swords, and the girl was holding a fuuma shuriken like it was some kind of shield.

Sasuke's lips broke out into the creepiest smirk Sakura had even seen him use, "Naruto," he whispered, "Sick 'im."

Naruto's face nearly split apart at the size of his grin.

"Dattebayo!" he shouted, before jumping down and landing right on top of the kunoichi. She yelped and lashed out with her fuuma shuriken. Naruto ducked under the wild swing and grabbed a hold of it.

Just as her teammates turned around, Naruto yanked the weapon from the Kusa kunoichi's grip and slammed her against the nearest tree. Within seconds the blond had stabbed the giant blade around her neck, holding her in place.

The Uzumaki smiled and clicked his tongue, "Now that's weird, dattebayo," he said, glancing up at Sakura and Sasuke. The girl's teammates each took a step forwards, focusing all their attention onto the blond in front of them.

"I'm supposed to be the worst in stealth in my graduating class, but you guys were easily tricked, 'ttebayo."

The two remaining members of team seven dropped down behind the boys.

Sasuke slammed the butt of his kunai against the back of ones skull, and they crumpled like a dropped scroll. Simple and fast, the move screamed Sasuke. Sakura, on the other hand, grabbed the persons skull and yanked them backwards, driving her knee into their lower back.

Kakashi-sensei would've been _so_ proud.

Naruto winced, "A little much, 'ttebayo?"

"Seemed like the perfect amount of force to me," Sakura grumbled.

"How?" Naruto demanded, "She could've snapped his spine, dattebayo!" The girl his was holding whimpered, staring down at her said teammate.

"Oh please," Sakura scoffed.

"Is he dead?" the kunoichi mumbled.

"I actually think he might be," Sasuke muttered, poking the boy with the toe of his sandal.

"Don't antagonize her," Sakura snapped, "And leave the poor boy alone."

Sasuke stepped away from the body and Naruto sniggered. "She's got'cha good, 'ttebayo."

"She's got you worse," Sasuke growled.

Sakura rolled her eyes, "Who has the scroll?" she asked the kunoichi.

The said girl glanced down towards the boy on the left, and Sasuke headed over towards him. He dropped down to the kids level, rifling through the genin's clothes until he pulled out a cylindrical object.

His face morphed into a scowl as he stood up, throwing it at Naruto's feet, "Heaven," he hissed.

Naruto groaned and let go of the girl.

She toppled forwards, slamming into the ground. Naruto bent to her level and she scrambled away, heading for the trees. Sakura knocked her out with a blow to the back of her head and glared over at the boy.

"She could've gotten away," Sakura said.

"But she didn't, dattebayo?" Naruto replied.

Sakura threw her hands up in exasperation and started to rage on about how he never took things seriously, along with giving examples on why. "Remember that time where you and Kiba and Choji and Shikamaru all ditched," she snapped, "Yeah, well that was the day we were taught how to handle hostages." Naruto rolled his eyes as she continued to blabble on and on and on.

"If you'd just paid attention then maybe this wouldn't have happened," she fumed, "And don't forget about the time when you sent that ANBU to tell us you were sick? Oh, don't even get me started on that-"

"What'll we do next, 'ttebayo?" Naruto asked.

"Head towards the tower and intercept someone as fast as we can," Sasuke said, "Right, Sakura?"

The said girl stopped mid-rant and stared at him, trying to catch up on the situation. "Oh...yeah," she said, "This entire test is to assess any and all field priorities. Defense, attack, stealth, recon; all of them are needed."

"Flipped like a coin," Sasuke grumbled.

Sakura smacked him upside the head, "Let's just head off," she hissed.

"Wait!" Naruto protested.

"What?" Sakura snapped, "What do you need?"

"I gotta pee," Naruto mumbled.

"Well don't do it in front of me," Sakura bit out, "I've already seen too much of you both." Both Naruto and Sasuke blushed and the former quickly scuttled off towards the bushes to relieve himself.

Sasuke and Sakura waited in silence for what seemed like forever, until Naruto finally came back, grinning a little smaller than he normally did.

"Sorry about that," he said, "So, what scroll did they have?"

Sakura glanced down at his holster, taking in which leg it was on. She snapped her eyes back up to his face. "Earth," she responded, "We're good to go."

He smiled, "That's great," he chirped. His jacket was slightly unzipped, and his voice wasn't nearly high enough.

"Can you tell us what time it is?" Sasuke asked. He'd caught on, just like she had.

Sakura could tell in his tone, the way his voice was slightly deeper - only by a pitch or two – than it was before. But his body language was casual. She took a slightly deeper breath and calmed herself down. She needed to be relaxed.

The fake Naruto raised an eyebrow, "But it hasn't even been that long." They'd forgotten the tic, too.

Sakura laughed, "Did you forget what Sakura said?

The said boy nodded, "We need to be fast. Besides, you have a pocket watch in your pouch, Hokage-sama gave it to you as a graduation gift, remember?"

This was the final test.

The imposter nodded and grabbed it, "Smart idea, Sasuke," he said.

He hadn't even watched them for a while, rookie mistake. Naruto never complimented Sasuke unless he felt like it and, even then, he still called him teme.

Flicking the watch open, the other genin nodded to himself. "Twenty minutes have passed," he stated, showing it to rest of his 'team.' Low and behold, instead of team sevens picture, there was ticking clock.

Sasuke hummed, "That's good."

Sakura's hand crept to her holster, "Here," she said, grabbing a kunai, "Get us a rabbit, will you? It'll be easier to get food now than later."

The imposter reached out a hand to accept it, and just before Sakura was about to hand it to him, she flipped it over in her palm and flicked it towards his head as fast as possible.

"Sasuke!" she yelled, just as the fake dove to the side.

The Uchiha's hands flowed through the seals for his fireball within seconds, and he let out a whooshing breath of air. The fake ducked under the attack and popped up in front of Sasuke, driving his fist into the boys gut.

Sakura quickly grabbed ten kunai, each tied together to another with some ninja wire.

She shot them towards the fraud. He dodged, but his arms got tied up, and when the kunai lodged themselves in some nearby tree trunks, he was yanked along with them.

Sasuke recovered and shot forwards, aiming a blow to the imposters neck. Just when he was close enough to hit them, they ripped the kunai out of the tree and rolled away from the blow. He popped up in front of the black haired genin and grabbed a handful of shuriken.

Sakura threw another wire-attached shuriken towards the said boy and latched it around his arm, yanking him back towards her.

"Thanks," Sasuke grumbled, unwrapping the wire from his limbs.

The fake Naruto stood up straight and brushed off his trousers, "Well, well, well," he rasped, "You're better than expected."

"Where's the dobe?" Sasuke demanded. He moved to take a step forwards, but Sakura grabbed his hand and yanked him into her. There was no way in hell she'd let her crush, er, teammate, walk straight into that trap.

She wasn't an idiot, after all. She knew what that 'genin' was capable of.

The way he moved showed off his training. His reaction time, his aim, the way he barely tensed his muscles – they were all tell-tale signs of strict training. Years and years of practiced kata's and mastered techniques.

The nonchalant aura he carried himself with didn't help, either.

It was something a veteran shinobi held themselves with. The person in front of them had gone on so many more missions then they had, and they weren't just D-ranks or unlucky B-ranks, they were assigned to him for his skills.

"What are you doing," Sasuke hissed.

"Keeping you safe," Sakura snapped, squeezing his hand tighter. The Haruno knew Naruto was in trouble, most likely in a life or death situation all on his own.

She'd be damned if she let Sasuke run straight into a fight with someone that obviously outranked them.

"Naruto-kun's playing with my pet," the imposter cackled.

"I'd rather you not use that suffix," Sakura said, "They make you sound like a pedophile."

The fake's lips split into a sly smile. The look didn't work on Naruto's face. Not at all. He licked his lips, "How do you know I'm not your age?" he asked.

His skin started to pale, and the blue hue of her teammates eyes, one that Sakura had gotten to know so well, faded away, almost as if the color was being sucked from it.

"You carry yourself too well," Sakura responded, "Kids our age don't have that."

"Different circumstances create different shinobi," he rasped. The imposter started to grow taller, and his close started to change, "Kids younger than you can have twice the experience of a jonin. War breeds experience, after all."

"We're not in war," Sasuke said.

" _You're_ not in war, at least not _now_ ," the fake hissed. His henge had fully dropped, leaving a greasy haired, snake eyed, fondant skinned shinobi in its wake. They looked like a walking corpse, one that was out for blood.

He grinned, "But others are."

Sakura took a step back, suddenly aware that this man – or woman. They really didn't seem to have a gender – was older, and more experienced, than them.

Her remaining teammate intertwined his fingers with hers, holding her hand tighter. _Great_. If Sasuke, the least emotional person in the world, could feel her fear, then their opponent could, too.

"Let me show you what fights are supposed to feel like," the man/woman guttered, dragging their hand down his – her? – face.

Sakura's breath caught in her throat. Suddenly, she was falling. She was being stabbed, blown up, hanged, burned and beaten all at the same time. Her organs were disolving, her flesh was rotting, and her blood was draining.

She dropped to her knees, tears streaming down her face. She was dying. Beside her, Sasuke slumped onto the ground, his breaths heavy.

Sweat – or was it blood? – slid down their arms and their hands slipped apart.

Sakura closed her eyes and the enemy pulled out two kunai, aiming them towards their heads just as Sasuke whispered her name.


	16. Blackened Blood: The Fight to Live

**I'm sorry it's been so long since I've updated! Schools gotten in the way of so much, and my sport started, so... Anyways, my Spring Break starts tomorrow, so Heime the Elephant and I will start churning out more new and edited chapters! Thanks to all who brought the review, follow, and favorites numbers up so high! I love you all, and thank you for sticking with Fading Petals for so long. The very first chapter was written Spring Break of last year, which means... this FanFic's a year old!**

 **Happy Birthday to Fading Petals! Whooooppppp! Don't forget to review, and I hope you enjoy this chapter! ~ Koi**

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There weren't many things that Haruno Sakura feared. Sure, she was afraid of many things, as was every other human being on the continent. It was just a natural instinct to shy away from certain situations and objects.

Sakura was afraid of big bugs and bad hair days and her mother when she was angry. Heck, she was even afraid of that demonic cat Tora. Most of those were common, especially the last two. But Sakura's fears, the things that kept her up at night, were limited to only a few things.

To start off, she feared dying. That was a basic. She didn't know what happened after, well, life, and she didn't _want_ to find out.

Only the deceased knew what lied beyond that shallow river. Sakura wasn't yet ready to cross, she had too many things to accomplish and too many people to protect.

She'd gladly lay down her life for others, but… she didn't want to think about what'd happen once she did.

Sakura also feared losing Hinata and Ino's friendship. Both were like sisters to her. Ino had reached out a hand to Sakura as a child, and, in turn, Sakura grasped a hold of Hinata and pulled the Hyuga out of the hole she'd buried herself in.

Even though the Yamanaka and the Haruno were still on pretty bad terms after their fight, Sakura still cared for the blonde. Ino hadn't said a word to her since then. Sakura knew she was up to something, she always was.

Lastly, Haruno Sakura feared the idea of those closest to her dying. Her Kaa-san, her Tou-san, Hokage-sama, Iruka-sensei, Hinata, Ino, Neji, TenTen, Kiba, Kakashi-sensei, Naruto, Sasuke; if any of them died, she'd be devastated.

Never in her life had Sakura ever been faced with all three of her fears at the same time. She was on a rocky road with Ino right now, and if Ino left, then there was a chance Hinata would leave, too. That was one fear down, two to go.

And now, as she clutched the back of Naruto's jumpsuit in an attempt to keep him from falling, the rest were coming true.

The very sight terrified her.

The blond's breath was coming out in slow, syrupy puffs that didn't match with the faint rise and fall of his chest. His eyes were just barely lidded, only covering enough to hide his irises. His arms were hanging down, pulling his entire body with them.

Sasuke knelt across from them, holding his hand to the wound on his chest. The snake man had stuck him down with a sword, leaving a long, ugly gash down the middle of the Uchiha's chest. Blood soaked the bark around him.

Sakura had managed to somehow stop the bleeding, but the cut itself was in a delicate area. She couldn't just go messing around with her Mystic Palm. She'd only practiced on area's with muscle. There were so many theories about organ overexposure to filtered chakra.

It had to be applied in a different way.

Organs weren't like muscle and tissue. All of those were essentially the same, with the same basic make-up. Sure, there were variations, but those came easily to anyone, it all just did what it needed to do on its own.

Organ's had specific ways of working, along with different make ups when it came to certain people. Not one person had the exact same way of functioning and all that shit.

There was also the fact that she didn't know exactly how each organ worked, or the specific parts of it, or where the chakra nerve pathways and veins were.

Really, Sakura could go on for days.

So, she couldn't just heal up Sasuke in such a fragile place in the body.

"Get Naruto away from here," the said boy gasped out, wincing a bit, "I'll handle this."

"You're losing blood faster than you're making it," Sakura protested, "I have to get both of you help. Leaving you is not going to speed up that process."

The man turned his slitted eyes towards her and smiled, licking his charred lips, "Sakura-chan," he rasped, "Look at you, all grown up."

Sakura shivered, "Like you know me," she snapped. It wasn't even close to threatening, though.

The pervert's grin split his face in half as he leaned forward slightly. Suddenly, his neck grew ten times in lengths as he sped towards Sasuke, latching onto the boy's shoulder with his teeth.

Sakura's scream erupted all around them.

Sasuke collapsed onto the branch he'd been kneeling on, teetering over the edge. Sakura lunged forwards, grabbing onto his arm and dragging Naruto with. Their combined weight yanked her down.

"Good luck, Tsuna-nidai," the man guttered, "You'll need it."

As she toppled to the ground, pulling both of her both of her boys into her sides, she glared up at him, making the first lifetime vow of many: _'I will eradicate you.'_

And, in the back of her mind, the voice hummed in approval, **''Atta girl, there's a reason I chose to communicate with** _ **you**_ **.'**

* * *

Sakura bit back a groan of pain, hoisting Sasuke up a bit higher on her shoulder.

Next to her, Naruto dragged his feet, only half conscious. His entire body was braced against hers as he shuffled along next to the Haruno. He'd slowly, slowly, been waking up, but he never fully gained control of himself.

Whatever the snake man had done to Naruto, it wasn't going to wear off soon. She didn't have time to check him physically – it wasn't worth it if someone caught them. Besides, Sakura had a hunch that his wounds were on his chakra system.

Sakura felt the back of her eyes burn. She'd never felt more useless in her life, not even when those demons had held her down and cut her wrists. She'd been able to heal her teammates before, but they were always bruises and scratches.

She still didn't know how to deal with bones or tendons or organs or chakra shit or anything important! She couldn't help Naruto and she sure as hell couldn't help Sasuke.

Sakura suppressed a shiver. Oh kami, Sasuke. Her entire right side was covered completely in his blood. It wasn't exactly a comforting feeling.

Sakura frowned and tried to move faster. They had the scroll, she'd stolen it from that bastards pocket earlier in the fight when he'd been distracted, but that didn't mean anything if Sasuke died. She had to get to the tower, she just had to.

But it wouldn't be possible.

It was already getting dark, and the trek to the finale would take too long with both of her teammates dragging her down; she'd never make it there in time.

The pinkette eventually found shelter in a carved out rock. Its back was facing a main path and it's front faces a thick lining of trees. She knew it wasn't ideal, but she'd have to make do.

Sakura let go of Naruto with a grunt ("Mmm, Sakura-channnnnn, not so harddddd.") and he dropped to the ground, curling in on himself like he was back in his bed. Sakura suppressed a snort at the sight and laid Sasuke down on the floor.

She yanked off both of the boys pouches and shoved them under their heads, blushing madly the entire time. After pulling off her blood soaked shirt – yuck! – Sakura pulled off Sasuke's shirt and started to dress his wounds.

She couldn't use her Mystical Palm, so she had to stick with regular first aid.

The Haruno grabbed Sasuke's old shirt from inside the scroll and laid it off to the side, before grabbing the kit she needed.

Pulling out a cloth, she doused it in some hydrogen peroxide and a bit of water from her canteen before patting it around the edges of the wound.

Once those were cleaned off, she started to work a bit closer to or directly on the cut. She had to be careful to stay away from the clots, those were needed, and if she broke them apart then Sasuke would probably bleed out.

It took Sakura ten minutes in total to clean the wound.

She wasn't proud of the time she wasted on just that, but she was a beginner, and with all the adrenaline running through her blood, she had to be careful. There was also the fact that she was running her hands up and down Sasuke's deliciously toned chest.

Sakura could practically feel her hormones going crazy. Or maybe that was Sasuke's heartbeat. Either way, both were bad.

Yikes, Sakura never knew healing would be this stressing!

"Kami," Sakura said, "What if Ino saw me? She'd be so jealous!" She quickly shook the thought out of her mind and sat back, staring down at Sasuke.

Normally, when Sasuke was sleeping – okay, yes, she watched him sleep – his face was calm, peaceful, even. He never really had an expression, but his lips did turn up slightly when he slept. Sakura had always thought it made him look like a god.

Ironic, seeing as he was part of the San-Kamigami.

But now, Sasuke looked anything but godlike. His face was pulled into a grimace, his eyes were squeezed shit, and his chest was heaving up and down in rhythm with his sporadic heart. Sweat had broken out across his neck and cheeks, too.

The entire sight made Sakura's stomach churn.

She couldn't lose him.

She just _couldn't_!

"Okay," the pinkette whispered to herself, "I can heal up the ends, since they're real shallow, then I'll stitch up the major parts, use an ointment on the leftovers, then put a few patches on. "

She nodded to herself and got to work, summoning chakra to her hands. "He'll be wrapped up and back to his old, emo self in no time," Sakura continued, the blue light near her palms flickering to green within seconds.

Sakura gave her not-really-a-crush the neatest stitches she could, then smothered Sasuke's wound in healing ointment. Medical squares were placed along it all and the Uchiha's chest was wrapped tightly to hold them in place.

To finish it all off, she started to wind bandages across his chest and over his shoulder to protect it all. She'd done everything the books had told her to, now all Sakura had to do was wait for him to wake up and hope he didn't get an infection.

Sakura tied off the edge of the bandage and tucked it under a strip. She packed up all the supplies and got ready to work on Naruto.

Then, something swiped across her collarbone, drawing blood. Sakura glanced down at the wound before darting her eyes back up to where it came from.

A kunai glistened in the last of the light from the sunset.

Suddenly, the world spun.

The ground bit into her back and Sakura's head slammed against rock. Something warm, a body – her attackers, probably – crawled over her. Pressure was put over her wrists, pinning them to the earth above her head, and a weight settles itself over her hips.

The hand that wasn't holding her arms put a kunai to her neck, pressing hard enough so that if Sakura moved, it'd draw blood.

"What are you doing?"

The voice was low, but not too deep, and it had a guttural rasp to it that sent shivers throughout Sakura's bones. A pair of dark, onyx eyes stared down at her, silver and gold flecks dancing within their depths.

A few seconds passed and the pinkette scowled. "Goddamnit, Sasuke," she snapped, "I literally _just_ sewed you back up!"

The Uchiha looked down at his chest then back to his teammates face, leaning forwards a bit "Sakura?" he asked, his breath fanning the side of her face.

"Haruno," Sakura mumbled with a fierce blush, squirming a bit, "I told you to call me Haruno."

His hand was still clenching her wrists together above her head and it kind of hurt. Though that wasn't the least of her worries.

Sasuke's face was too close to hers, their hips were touching, and one of his arms was brushing against the top of her chest. Not to mention she was wearing her under armor– which consisted of metal mesh and a leather cover.

Sasuke, however, didn't seem to realize. That, or he didn't mind.

Sakura's face heated up even more.

Sasuke raised an eyebrow, let go of her wrists, and dropped the kunai from her neck, "Did you get a fever?" he asked, putting his forehead against hers for a quick second.

Sakura sucked in a shaky breath. Everything was too much. He was too close. Too close. They were touching and he was shirtless and she didn't have much on and this was getting to weird and…and…

He lifted his forehead away from hers, but not by much. It didn't help her racing pulse, or the hormones flooding through her system.

"S-Sasuke-kun," Sakura breathed out. The said boy jolted and moved away from her a bit, his cheeks dusted a light pink, "If you don't get off within the next ten seconds I think I'm going to faint."

The raven haired boy stared down at her, a small smile creeping up onto his lips, "Why would you faint?" he asked, leaning down.

Sakura's heart practically stopped as her got closer… closer … closer.

"Sasuke-kun…," she whispered, putting a hand to his shoulder, "Stop."

He didn't. Instead, Sasuke's eyes rolled back up into his head and he toppled forwards, his grip going slack. His head tittered past Sakura's; his lips brushing against the edge of hers as he fell and hit the floor.

The pinkette's eyes went wide, "Sasuke?" she muttered, shaking his shoulders. "Sasuke!" She winced when her hand hit the wound where the snake bastard had bitten him.

It was steaming hot, almost like a fire.

Sakura shoved her teammate off her and got to her feet, dragging him back towards where she'd made his makeshift bed.

"No, no, no, no, no," Sakura muttered, grabbing another cloth and dousing it in water. She wiped all across the Uchiha's face and down his arms before holding it down directly onto the bite.

Sasuke choked on a scream, his body thrashing around uncontrollably. Sakura shoved him back down and scrambled to sit on his chest. She put as much pressure as possible over the wound in attempt to keep it cool.

It was overheating, which was leading to Sasuke's body temperature rising. But that wasn't all. Whatever the perverted bastard had done was slowing down the genin's heart rate. He wasn't getting enough oxygen.

"Keep breathing," Sakura said, "Keep. Breathing."

Sasuke let out a moan of pain in response. Even more sweat broke out across his face, having twisted into agony.

For the next forty minutes, Sakura battled to keep Sasuke's body temperature down as he practically tore himself apart. She put all her weight into keeping him on the ground; they were safer that way, after all. Sasuke was a danger to both himself _and_ Sakura with his limbs lashing back and forth uncontrollably.

She wouldn't be able to do anything else if she got injured.

Suddenly, the heat stopped. Sakura gasped and moved her hands away from the bit, only yo find herself staring down at three black tomoe where it used to be.

"Holy shit," she breathed, "It that a seal?"

It seemed to throb and pulse in response.

Sakura bent down and felt for Sasuke' heartbeat. He was still alive, the change hadn't done anything drastic yet, at least as far as she could tell. For all she knew, it could have altered his mind or his genetic code, maybe even give him some kind of wings or something.

Sasuke," Sakura said, "Can you hear me?"

Silence.

"Look," she continued, "If you can, I need you to stay awake, even if you're not looking at me or at anything else. Focus on my voice, okay, focus on my voice,"

"It hurts," the said boy mumbled.

Sakura let out a sigh of relief. Good. He was conscious. Whatever the black mark was, it wasn't good. "I know it hurts," Sakura replied, "But I need you to stay awake. Stay here." She stood up to grab another cloth, only for Sasuke's arm to lash out, latching onto her wrist.

"You can't leave," he whimpered, holding tightly onto Sakura.

"I'm not leaving," Sakura said.

"Yes, you are," Sasuke growled. His grip tightened on her skin until the pinkette's entire wrist started to burn. The black mark seemed to explode as dark spots raced across his shoulder and down his arm. They twisted up his neck and onto his cheek.

"Sasuke, I'm not leaving," she protested, trying to tug her arm away. He didn't know what he was doing. That thing that was spreading across him, it was warping his mind.

He didn't let go of her, though, instead choosing to hold onto Sakura even tighter. She could feel his fingers digging into her wrist, leaving their mark. It stung and burned, and as Sakura watched the marks throb on his hand, all she could do was stare in horror.

That man had done this to him. He'd broken Sasuke down into this, this monster.

Sakura let out a yip of pain and tried to yank her arm away from him again. He'd break her wrist at this point.

"You're hurting me!" she yelled, "Sasuke! Stop! You're hurting me!"

The Uchiha's grip went slack and his hand slipped off Sakura's. The marks stopped pulsing, before slowly, slowly, moving back up towards his shoulder. They swirled together until they formed that swirling tomoe shape once again.

"I don't want to be alone," he whispered, opening his eyes and staring straight into hers, "Not again. Never again. Don't leave me, please. Don't leave me."

Sakura grabbed his hand and squeezed it tight, "I won't leave you, Sasuke. I'll never leave you. But you have to promise me that you'll stay here, okay."

"I promise," he muttered, "I won't leave you."

Slowly, Sasuke's eyes slipped closed, and a single tear trailed down his cheek.

Sakura stared down at him, watching the rise and fall of his chest for Kami knows how long before she finally stood up. She yanked on a new shirt and changed both Naruto and Sasuke's tops as well. The Haruno cleaned up all the supplies and started a fire, burning the used clothes and cloth.

It been a miracle Sasuke hadn't ripped through his bandages; Sakura was grateful for that. She wouldn't have to deal with all those, too. The smoke would hide the teams scent, and the fire itself would destroy any evidence of them being there.

The only person that would be able to find hem would be a sensor, but no genin, no matter how old, would be able to track them.

Sakura looked around before quickly packing up all their belongings, including the Heaven and Earth scrolls, and threw them into the storage seal, which she'd shove into her holster. It was already low, so she could deal without a few.

The Haruno put up a multilayered henge on herself and her teammates, threw the said boys over her shoulders, and started to trudge forwards towards the tower.

* * *

 **I've put up a lot of One-Shot's, most of which are linked slightly to Fading Petals.**

 **Kanashimi wo Yasashisa Ni: About each of Konoha 11's childhoods**

 **How I Met Your Mother: Legit how Sakura met Sasuke (in Fading Petals)**

 **Heaven, Hell, and Home: My first attempt at tragedy/angst**

 **AND DON'T FORGET TO VOTE FOR THE NEXT SEPARATE P.O.V FADING PETALS ONE SHOT! IT'S ONLY MY PROFILE; ONLY A CLICK AWAY! SO VOTE, DAMN IT!**


	17. I Wish to Survive: A Want for Protection

**Hold the rotten tomatoes, okay! I'm here with a chapter and if you throw those damned fruits then it wont getposted, 'kay? ...We good ...? ...Seriously, I have no excuses that'll work, maybe I should take a page from Kakashi's book ... hmm. Anyways, here's the new chapter, since you didn't chuck any rotten food at me. ALSO! The poll for the next P.O.V one-shot of Fading Petals will CLOSE AT THE NEXT CHAPTER UPDATE! So get your damned votes in! Love you all for putting up with me and my unexcused hiatus/posting-break (... the chapter might've already been done... sorry!). ~Koi**

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Haruno Sakura lost track of how long she'd been walking. She'd chosen to follow one of the worn down paths in the trees, finding branches with enough foliage on them and heading along that route on the ground. There was no way in hell she'd be careless enough to let the team be seen.

Her legs burned and her feet throbbed. She'd gotten countless splinters on her toes, and her shoulders were starting to ache. Not to mention she'd had to drop the henge on herself and her teammates due to a lack of chakra.

If her levels got any lower, then she'd probably start to experience symptoms of mild chakra exhaustion.

It was a miracle she'd made it this far. She thought someone would have confronted her at this point. She was getting closer and closer to the tower, and the teams that still needed their other scroll would start attacking those who had both.

It was a simple strategy, one that team seven would have probably used if they didn't get the scroll they'd needed. If only they'd been able to obtain it without running into that snake bastard.

Sakura grit her teeth at the mere thought. She was going to find out who she, or he, was, then she'd track them down and make them pay for what they'd done to her team.

Sasuke still hadn't regained consciousness after his second, and last, fainting spell, Naruto's half-awake, half-asleep mode had finally stopped, leaving the blond fully out of it, and her own situation wasn't helpful in the least.

Her back was starting to hurt. Not like an 'oh, I'm old and it aches' kind of hurt, but a snapping, cracking kind. It hadn't kicked in until recently, probably because of adrenaline. She'd most likely fractured something on her fall down from the trees, but that was nothing compared to the boy's injuries.

She could only hope that Sasuke's body would replenish enough blood for him to get back into a stable condition. Sakura still felt bad that he'd be left with such an ugly scar. Whatever girlfriends, or even a wife, that he'd end up having later on in life would have to live with a scarred man.

Sure, it was something Sakura wouldn't mind – especially since it was on _Sasuke_ – but a civilian, on the other hand, wouldn't be able to take it that well.

And Naruto'. well, if his chakra wasn't able to correct itself, then he'd be stuck with whatever the hell he had for the rest of this life.

Only a top notch medical ninja would be able to deal with it. Or a fuinjutsu master, if it fell under that category. But Sakura was skeptical about that, she didn't find any ruins or characters that would show it was.

A shrill, high pitched yell broke the pinkette out of her mind: "Ohmygod, Sakura!"

The said girl whirled around at the sound of her name, dropping her teammates to the ground as gently as possible and jumping in front of them. She lowered herself into a Hyuga defense stance

It didn't matter of whoever it was knew her or not, she had to protect her teammates. She'd rip them from limb to limb, then set Sasuke's fangirls on them.

They wouldn't lay a finger on her boys, not if she had any say about it –

Sakura blinked, "TenTen?" she asked, lowering her stance.

– Unless it was TenTen, she could do anything she wanted to her teammates as long as it wasn't intimate. The said girl slammed into her pink haired friend with the force of a thousand shinobi, wrapping her arms around Sakura in a bone crushing hug.

The weapons mistress let go of her friend after a few long, awkward seconds and knelt down to pick up Naruto, "Are you okay?" she asked, "Is he okay?"

Sakura raised an eyebrow at the sight. Normally people didn't give a shit about Naruto. Did Hinata have a rival or something? "I'm fine. Naruto isn't ... Are you two…" she trailed off.

"What," she sputtered, "No!" TenTen blushed a bit, "I lived with him in the orphanage for a while."

"You're an orphan?"

"Yeah," she said, hoisting the blond up on her shoulder, "Grab pretty boy, we'll help you to the tower."

Sakura pondered a bit over the last part. We? She turned to look for the others, only to find her vision filled with the horrendous color pallet that was Rock Lee. She stumbled back a bit at the sight of such bright colors.

It'd seemed like forever since she'd seen something that wasn't green, brown, or blood red.

"You can count on us to help you youthfully make it to the finish line, Sakura-san!" Lee yelled, thrusting his fist up in the air.

Sakura laughed, grabbing Sasuke and pulling up his shirt to check on his stiches, "Thank Kami," she muttered, "They haven't ripped. And thank you, Lee." She nodded over to Neji, who hadn't said a single word since she ran into them, and flashed him a smile.

His eyes were focused straight on her, worry filling them to the brim. For one his eyes looked like his cousins, warm and kind.

"Hey," she greeted, "Haven't seen you around."

"It's nice to see you're safe," the Hyuga said, "Do you want me to take Uchiha?"

Sakura shook her head no, "I feel better holding onto him, thanks though."

Neji frowned a bit, but shrugged her words off, instead putting a hand on her shoulder for reassurance. Sakura winced at the pressure, but still forced another smile.

She knew Neji didn't show concern for many people, so she tried to hide her pain. She didn't want to hurt his feelings, if he truly had any.

"Are you sure you're okay?" TenTen asked.

"I'm fine," Sakura groaned, half in annoyance, half in pain, "No need to bring out the demanding sister syndrome."

"TenTen can be quite overprotective at some point," Lee stated, "But she is filled with the flames of youth and means very well."

"You've only seen doting mother mode," she said girl scoffed over, "Demanding sister syndrome is much different."

"How so?" Neji asked.

"Don't ask," Sakura said with a shudder.

"Seriously," TenTen said, sending him a grin so feral Kiba would be proud, "Don't."

They spent the rest of the trek in silence. Their soft footsteps and the harsh breaths of Sakura's teammates were enough 'words' for the four genin to bear. Within time, the tower came into view, and the mood seemed to lighten slightly.

The pain in Sakura's back had reached it's peak halfway through the trip, and by now she was simply ignoring it, pushing all her strength into her legs. She needed to get to the checkpoint so Sasuke and Naruto could get help.

That's all that really mattered at this point.

Eventually, all four of them stumbled into the tower, dragging Naruto and Sasuke behind them. Sakura let go of the latter and dropped to the ground, completely exhausted.

Neji went to set Sasuke down, probably to help her, but Sakura shot him a look. It took up too much strength to keep the hardened expression, so she dropped it after a few seconds, but the Hyuga got the point. He hiked Sasuke up higher on his shoulder and backed off.

Lee took the injured boys other arm, bracing half his weight so Neji didn't have to deal with it all.

TenTen struggled a bit with Naruto, but somehow managed. She sat down next to the door, leaning Sakura's teammate next to her. His blond head lolled onto her shoulder, but TenTen didn't seem to mind. She stroked the top of his head lightly, as if she was trying to soothe him.

Sakura gulped in a few breaths and tried to stand up, only for dots to swim behind her eyes. She couldn't be in that bad of a condition, could she? All she'd done was walk and heal and walk some more.

' _Maybe it's a lack of food,'_ she thought, gasping for air, ' _Or air._ ' Suddenly, her mouth went dry. ' _Or water.'_

' _ **You really need to take better care of yourself,'**_ the voice chastised. Sakura pushed it to the back of her mind. She didn't have time for an argument now, she had to get Naruto and Sasuke help.

Opening her mouth, she readied herself to yell for a medic, but only a soft, Hinata level voice came out.

Sakura had never felt so tired in her life, not even when she first started her – albeit light – training with Gai, and definitely not when she'd finished her fight with Haku.

"Chakra exhaustion," a voice spoke up. Sakura glanced towards its owner.

Was she really so tired that she didn't notice the medics walking in?

"My teammates…," she muttered, struggling to her feet. She swayed back and forth like a sapling in the wind, "Sasuke… dark hair… bad wound on his chest. I…. tried to heal…. Couldn't do it. Stitches, not very good."

A few of the women standing in front of her – or maybe it was really just one, Sakura could tell – stepped forward and took the said boy from Neji and Lee, loading him onto a gurney.

Behind Sakura, TenTen got up, struggling with Naruto's weight.

"We won't heal him," one of the medics said when she noticed the whiskered Genin.

"Isn't it in the medic code or whatever to whoever needs help?" TenTen huffed out, her face red in a mixture of anger and exhaustion.

"There are exceptions," one added, pointing to Naruto in distaste, "He is one of them."

"That's not very youthful," Lee protested.

"We will not waste chakra on him," the third said.

"Then use mine," Sakura gasped, stumbling forwards, "I have… more than enough."

"Do you even know what chakra exhaustion is?" the first medic snapped.

"Don't know…," she puffed, "Don't… care."

It was a lie. A complete and utter lie. She knew just from walking that she had nothing in her left. It didn't matter if she fell into a coma, it didn't matter if she died. That seal on Sasuke, it hurt him.

Mentally…physically; she couldn't bear to see him in that state anymore. Not to mention his wound. Kami, the cut itself was something Sakura had never seen before.

She'd looked at diagrams of similar injuries, but in real life, with the rpped flesh and the blood, all the blood. Shivers racked Sakura's body. She gripped at her arms, digging her fingers into her skin to stop the shaking.

And Naruto. Oh kami, Naruto. Whatever that son of a bitch had done to him, it wasn't good.

The Haruno's heart broke at the thought of either of her teammates never being able to be shinobi again. It was their goal: Naruto to be Hokage, and Sasuke to get revenge against his brother for whatever reason he deemed fit.

"Your levels are too low," the medic growled, "the only chakra in your body is the primary kind – the stuff that keeps everything in you alive."

"Then take some from… a kidney or whatever," Sakura snapped, losing strength by the second. Was that one medic in front of her? Or ten? "I can live with… one."

The medics all exchanged looks before sighing. Sakura was stubborn, it was something she'd picked up from interacting with Ino for so long. The blonde knew how to get her way, therefore, Sakura did as well.

If she kept pushing, kept protesting, they'd eventually give in.

And they did.

"You," the one on the left – or was it right? – said, pointing at Sakura, "Sit down on the other gurney. Panda-head, you put the kitsune on the third. The three of you can walk, right? Follow us."

The pinkette stumbled forwards, nearly falling flat on her face at the first step. Neji grabbed one of her arms as she toppled head first, yanking her back into his chest. He steadied her shoulders and put a hand on her hip, walking her to the moving cot.

Sakura was too tired to notice the pain on TenTen's face as they passed.

Sakura hadn't thought she could feel anymore useless than when she was in the Forest of Death. She was wrong. What really drove the idea in was watching the medical kunoichi patch up Sasuke's wounds within a matter of minutes.

Glowing hands laid themselves over the wound, running up and down it like a zipper. The kunoichi washed the rest of Sasuke's blood off and took out the stitches Sakura had made. "Are these yours?" she asked.

Sakura nodded.

The woman sent her a small smile, "They're pretty good, how often do you practice?"

"Once a week, when I have the chance," Sakura lied. It'd been her first time stitching anything up, she only followed what the book told her. "Chakra isn't always there to heal."

The medic hummed with what seemed to be approval, "It helped me seal it up faster, thanks. If it was open, it'd probably have taken fifteen minutes." She took in the look on Sakura's face and explained Sasuke's condition:

"It was only flesh that was damaged, if it was a few centimeters deeper, however, it probably would've hit his diaphragm and part of his stomach. We'll give him some blood replenishing pills and he'll be good in about half a day."

Sakura thanked the medic one more time, "And what about Naruto?" she asked.

The medic scowled at the boy's name, "The kitsune is fine," she grumbled, "We cleared his chakra pathways. There's been some tampering on his seal, can't fix that; but I'm sure the Hokage will call someone in to."

"Seal?" Sakura said, confused.

"You don't know?" the medic asked. Sakura shrugged. She had no idea what the woman was talking about. "Then I can't tell you. Ask the monster about it." And with that, she walked away, leaving Sakura alone on her cot.

She wasn't allowed to move from it, the medics had even strapped her legs onto the bed. She was in the same room as Sasuke, so that helped ease her worry. The medic had slapped an IV on her arm earlier, leaving the limb icily numb.

Naruto was in another room. TenTen and Lee had followed the other kunoichi to make sure they didn't hurt him or anything. Neji had been shooed out a bit before Sakura's own healer helped out Sasuke, telling him that he should go deal with his scrolls or something.

Speaking of scrolls…

Sakura looked down at the two rolls of paper in her hands. They'd been given to her, along with her original set of clothing, a little after she'd stabilized. She knew she should probably be opening them with Sasuke and Naruto, but the pinkette had no idea when the two would wake up.

Sighing, she grabbed the strings holding them closed and tugged it off, unfurling both the Heaven and Earth scrolls together.

She'd been expecting an explanation on the final round once she'd opened them, maybe a few streamers, but she had definitely _not_ expected Kakashi-sensei to poof into place at the foot of her bed.

Sakura blinked once, twice, before shrieking and doing the one thing she could: she chucked the scrolls at her teacher.

Kakashi-sensei ducked, letting the two projectiles smack into the wall behind him. "What's with you and throwing things at me, Sakura?"

"Sorry," the Haruno mumbled, "You just startled me."

The door burst open, the medic from before standing in the doorway. She looked around quickly, eyes frantic, before her gaze settled on Kakashi-sensei. "Hatake-san," she greeted.

The said jonin glanced at her and smiled, "Ah, good afternoon, um…" She slammed the door, not even giving the poor man a chance to even try to figure out her name. "Okay, be that way," he grumbled, "So, Sakura, you all passed."

"I noticed."

Kakashi-sensei looked over to Sasuke for a bit, "What happened?"

"Some snake-bastard."

Kakashi-sensei straightened, his slouch long gone. The room grew cold. " _What_?" Kakashi-sensei asked, his voice deep, guttural, even.

"Some snake bastard," Sakura spat again, malice laced in her voice. She forced down a shiver, "he hit Naruto with something, the medics said they tampers with a seal or something. He slashed Sasuke with a sword and bit –"

Sakura didn't have a chance to continue. Kakashi-sensei had flashed over towards Sasuke and hoisted the boy over his shoulder, before disappearing in a swirl of leaves.

The Haruno's heart practically stopped.

If sensei had reacted like that…

She shot to her feel, swaying a bit. Sakura knew she still wasn't healthy. Spots blurred her vision, and her legs felt numb, needles prickling the bottom of her feet. She yanked her IV out, not even registering the sting as blood drippled its way down her arm. The limb was still cold, masking any and all pain.

Sakura stumbled towards the door.

' **Sakura,'** the voice hissed for the first time in what seemed like forever, **'Stop, you shouldn't be moving.'**

' _Shut up,'_ Sakura snapped internally, _'Damn parasite. This is_ my _body;_ I _can push it however far I want.'_

Sakura flung the door open and tripped out, grasping onto the doorway to steady herself. She shuffled forwards, one foot in front of the other, until she reached a railing. The Haruno clutched onto it for dear life, her knuckles turning white at the force used.

It took her a few more seconds to unclench her fist, and another few to make her feet start moving again. She used the rail like a crutch, sliding her arm along it as far as she could, then pulled herself forwards. It wasn't the best way to move, but it was faster than lifting her legs.

She made it down the entire hallway before running inter her first obstacle: a corner.

Sakura groaned, sliding a hand down her face. The blood from her wound, having dripping all the way down to her fingers, smeared across her cheeks. The Haruno shuddered at the sensation, but chose to ignore the red liquid on her face; she could deal with that later.

The pinkette let go of the rail, stumbling away a bit, before sucking in a breath and throwing herself to the opposite wall. She connected with it with a long bang and a small burst of pain on her shoulder. Grasping onto the edge, she yanked herself around the corner.

She wasn't strong enough to stop her momentum, and instead of stumbling into the next wall like she'd planned, she slammed into the floor.

' _Sasuke, need to help. Kakashi-sensei…snake bastard… bite…. Blood… bite…'_

A shriek broke through Sakura's frantic thoughts. "Ohmykami, Sakura?!"

The said girl barely registered the footsteps rushing her way. She struggled to raise herself up on her arms. "Need to get to Kakashi-sensei," she mumbled, almost in a haze.

Yellow filled her vision and the world flipped upwards.

Ino gagged at the sight of the blood on Sakura's face. "Choji!" she yelled, "Get the medics! Shikamaru, help me!" Choji dropped his bag of chips and rushed off down the hall. Shikamaru bent down swiftly, grabbing onto Sakura's arm and slinging it over his shoulder.

"She's already been," he grumbled, nodding down towards her small wound. It bled too much for such a small scratch, but that could've been because it'd been hooked up to a vein, "This is from an IV."

Sakura glanced over to Ino, "Sasuke," she muttered, "I need to help."

"What happened to Sasuke-kun?" Ino demanded.

"Doesn't matter," Shikamaru grunted, getting up. Sakura stumbled along with him. "We have to get her help. Her face is too white for her to be fine."

Sakura struggled against the Nara's grip, "No, lemme go," she protested, "I have to help. I have to help."

"You've done enough," Shikamaru whispered, "Uchiha's fine, okay, wherever he is, he's fine."

"Promise?"

Shikamaru nodded, "I promise … Ino, do your thing."

" _Shintenshin no jutsu."_

The world went black.


	18. A Team Torn: The Fights Begin

**Anyone else notice the chapter names are getting darker and darker? ...Okay, just me then. ~Koi**

* * *

"Ino, it's not faulty. You have no need to practice."

"Yeah, Asuma-sensei it right. You agree with me, right, Shikamaru?"

"Huh. Ow! Oh, yeah. You got into her head. You don't need to keep practicing. It's too troublesome…"

"You guys don't understand! It's not that I got into her mind! I always get into people's minds. It's just, there was nothing there, sensei. It was like blank canvas, a big expanse of white. Nobody's mind is like that, not even a newborn's. It shouldn't be possible, yet Sakura, she…"

"Okay, Ino, I understand. Just, stop using your chakra. You need to recover from the forest."

"I know, sensei, it's just … there's something wrong with her mind, and I really want to be able to help."

* * *

 _Rabbit … Two sons … purple rings … Hyuga … white … Uchiha … windmill … Senju … river … leaves … Sarutobi … contract … shadow … body … mind … Uzumaki … scarlet hair … seals … chains … nine beasts … Haruno … mist … sand … rock … cloud …_ three _eyes ._

 _Red door… Tears red door… Sweat… red door… Blood… Red door… Blood, blood, red door, blood, red door, red door, red, red, red, red, red_

' **You're not ready…'**

Sakura shot up out of her cot, only for spots to blur her already dancing vision. Pain bloomed near the back of her skull. The pinkette groaned, gripping onto her hair.

"Owwwwwww," she hissed, squeezing her eyes shut in hopes of blocking out the throbbing ache.

"Seriously, Haruno? A _headache_?" A – somehow graceful and kind of majestic – snort rang through the air, "You're worse than the Usuratonkachi."

"Shut it, Sasuke," Sakura snapped, reacting to the voice before she could even wrap her mind around what she'd heard… what she'd heard… what _had_ she heard? It'd seemed like a jumble of words; she couldn't make anything out…

Was that even what she was thinking of?

…

Wait!

"Sasuke!" Sakura screamed, turning at break neck speed to face the said boy.

"Yes?" he asked, arching a raven brow.

Sakura's mouth swung open and closed like a screen door. Her mind scrolls through what seemed like a billion phrases within milliseconds before she finally spouted the most original words in the universe: "You're not _dead_!"

The look of boredom on Sasuke's face only deepened, though his eyes did spark with what looked to be amusement.

"Obviously…" he drawled.

Sakura sat up further, reaching out towards where he sat near the side of the bed. She lifted her hand to his face – he flinched a bit, shock and horror flying across his face– but ended up dropping her palm to rest over where that snake man had bit him.

"Are you alright?" Sakura asked.

The tips of his ears tinged pink.

"Well…." he trailed off, "I'm not _dead_."

Sakura smacked his chest, and, for the first time since that start of the chunin exams, Sasuke chuckled.

It hadn't been more than two days, last she checked, she had no idea how long she'd been out, but it'd seemed like forever, especially with what had happened in the forest.

"Really," Sakura huffed out, resting her hand over his heart, "What happened?"

"I…," he sighed, lifting her palm off his and brushing his shift off to the side, revealing both the tip of the scar from his former wound and three tomoe, all surrounded by scripture.

"It's _something_. Kakashi," Sakura frowned at the lack of honorifics, "never said what it actually was, though."

"It's seal," Sakura said, her eyes still locked onto the black swirl of doom, "I saw it form back in the forest. I thought I'd gone away…" Sasuke's eyes hit the floor, "Naruto had something similar," Sakura continued, "I heard it messed with his chakra."

"Hn," Sasuke grunted out, "sounds like the Usuratonkachi, getting himself in the kind of situation."

"Look who's talking!" Sakura huffed, "You have one too!"

"You just said it's different," Sasuke protested.

"Did not!"

"Did too."

"Did not!"

"Hn. Did too. You even admitted it."

"No I _didn't_! I _just_ _said_ did n –"

The door to the room slammed open, leaving behind a droopy-eyed Kakashi-sensei in its wake, "My, my," he smiled, his mask crinkling back into its familiar creases, "The lovebirds are having an argument?"

Sakura sputtered, grasping for words. How could he just waltz in with a line like that? It was so offensive! And annoying! And it gave Sasuke the wrong – or right, depending on her view – idea about her.

How dare he! That… that…

…that ecchi reading bastard! …Kami, she was starting to sound like Naruto.

Sakura let out a growl.

"I'll bake you into a cake," she hissed, her signature line making Kakashi-sensei tick in a mixture of amusement and fear, thought the latter was probably due to the fact that her hands were twitching in an oh-so-ominous way.

"He's just trying to rile you up," Sasuke said, "Don't worry."

"Does this place not have any windows?" Sensei asked, ignoring the kids' words, "It's so uncomfortable to use the door…"

"Is there something you need, sensei?" Sakura asked.

"No, why? Were you in the middle of something?" His cheeks tinged pink, "D-Do I have to give you _the_ _talk_?"

For the second time that day, Haruno Sakura hurled her pillow at the perverted albino.

* * *

To say Sasuke had beat Yoroi within minutes would've been an understatement. The Uchiha was a blur, it was almost as if he'd thrown a bird henge on himself and had sped off towards his opponent. A blast of Katon, a drop kick, and a kunai to the back had sent the poor boy to his knees in what seemed to be mere seconds.

Beside Sakura, the other genin gaped. They'd seen the prodigy fight before, but, in the short time he'd been with team seven, he'd improved by leaps and bounds.

If Uchiha Sasuke, the boy who listened to no one but himself, who relied on nothing besides his own wit and power, had gotten this good under Hatake Kakashi's tutelage, then exactly how much had his teammates grown?

Sakura suppressed a slight giggle. "Care to pick up your jaw, Yamanaka?"

Ino blinked, her mouth slamming shut within a blink.

Sakura prayed the speed chipped one of her pearly whites.

The proctor raised his hand, "Winner, Uchiha Sasuke."

The said boy smirked, heading for the stairs. Sakura stared down at him, taking in the gleam of his irises… and the downward twitch of his lips. The skin near his eyes crinkled down in familiar lines. The pinkette frowned.

The seal was still affecting him.

Naruto grinned, rushing over as soon as his best friend/biggest rival walked off the last step. He threw his arm over Sasuke's shoulder, "Atta boy, 'tteayo. Ya beat him before I could even start to jeer."

Kiba leaned in towards Shino, "Since when did idiot over their use the word 'jeer?'" The bug user shrugged.

Sakura rolled her eyes, waving her teammates over. "Nice fight, Uchiha-san," she beamed.

He frowned a bit, "What's with you and my surname?"

She rolled her eyes, "Fine. Nice fight, _Sasuke_." He nodded a bit, whether in thanks or in appreciation of his name, Sakura couldn't tell which.

Anyhow, Ino looked like she wanted to gut a puppy.

The sound of the scoreboard whirling brought all the genin's eyes to its screen. Sakura watched as the hiragana flicked into place.

Match one, between Temari's brother, Kankuro-san, and a nameless boy had passed, along with the second, which involved Shino and another random kid. Match three had just finished, with Sasuke and his opponent bringing it to a close quite quickly.

Needless to say, Suna and Konoha were going strong at this point.

The proctor shifted the senbon between his teeth, calling the next match: "Inuzuka Kiba versus Hyuga Hinata."

The said girl yipped.

Kiba's jaw dropped. He gulped, glancing down at his teammate, and started to speak: "I forf -"

"If your forfeit," Hinata stated, voice scarily low, especially when paired with her quiet tone.

Her behavior had done a total one-eighty once she'd realized that her teammate was going to throw the match for her. "Then I will personally tell Kurenai-sensei about you watching over her dates with that other sensei."

Sakura gaped, then giggled.

Kiba's mouth slammed shut. He stared down at Hinata, "I don't wanna hurt you, Shino'd kill me…"

Hinata gave a quite scoff, masking it with a cough. She started for the stairs, hair swishing behind her. Akamaru whined, and, soon, Kiba followed after her.

"This is going to be interesting," Sasuke mused, leaning down on the railing and propping his chin in his palm. A soft smile turned his lips upwards.

Sakura had to force herself from drooling.

Naruto nodded, adding in a quick ''ttebayo' and plopping down on the ground, dangling his legs through the bars and looking content with the match pairings.

Hinata and Kiba, who had Akamaru perched on his shoulder, straightened their backs, faces hard. The proctor almost flinched when Hinata sent Kiba a small smile.

"Good luck to you," she said.

"Keep it," he grinned, "You'll need it more…"

"Start!"

Hinata's Byakugan flashed.

She dropped low to the round, rushing Kiba from under. Her hands drew back and slammed forwards towards his chest. Kiba back flipped away, careful to keep his body far from her palms.

His sandals hit the ground, only for a kunai to land between his feet.

BOOM!

He flipped up again, skidding away from the explosion. He glanced over at her, finishing off his first thought: "You know what, _I'll_ keep it."

Hinata rolled her eyes and sped towards him, zigzagging in and out of his line of sight.

Akamaru dropped to the ground, and poofed into another Kiba.

Hinata didn't so much as blink at the sight, completely immune to the shock everyone else in the room felt.

They barely ever saw Kiba use his clan's techniques, and, to put it simply, a dog – seemingly – turning into a human was _astonishing_.

Temari sucked in a gasp, while Kankuro completely chocked on his spit. Even Gaara's eyes widened a bit.

Sakura smiled, leaning over towards the siblings. Temari flinched, sending her a weird look, and opened her mouth to retort – until she caught sight of Sakura's hair, recognizing her.

Sakura smiled, "Inuzuka," she said, "Translation…"

"Freakin' 'Dog hill,'" Kankuro finished.

"And 'kiba' means fang…," Temari mused. She glanced over to Sakura, a smirk playing on her lips, "Not really creative, are they?"

"I find it smart," Gaara mumbled, eyes locked on the fight.

Temari flinched, and Kankuro gaped.

Sakura just blinked, confused to as why they were surprised he talked. Sasuke shot her a small glare, almost as to ask why she was speaking with them. She ignored him, sticking out her a tongue a bit.

"Now that you mention it, it is, Gaara-san…" she said, trailing off. The raccoon eyed boy glanced over to her, nodded a bit, then went back to the match.

Sakura shrugged at the incredulous look Temari gave her, turning her eyes to her best friend's fight.

Akamaru had bent down onto all fours, crouching in a slightly familiar position.

And, suddenly, he was off, spinning in an arc of doom. Hinata, the obvious target of the famous Gatsuga, pivoted. Her step-side threw the dog off a bit.

During his confusion, she reared her arms back, preparing for a blow.

Kiba slammed into Hinata from behind, throwing them both to the ground. Akamaru hit the floor a second later, claws marking divots in the concrete.

Kiba drew back his fist and aimed a punch at the Hyuga's face. In the same moment, Hinata's palm sped towards his stomach. Kiba threw himself to the side, rolling off his teammate and onto the floor.

The two opponents distanced themselves, and Akamaru jumped back to Kiba's side. A second passed. Then, Kiba raced for the girl in front of her, nails sharpened and out.

Hinata drew out some senbon.

Kiba got to her too fast, though, and she didn't have time to aim for a vein. His claws swiped at her throat.

She threw the needles up in the air and dropped to the ground, pearl eyes blazing. The genin swiped a foot under his.

Kiba, who wasn't expecting a Hyuga to use their legs, dropped to the ground.

He rolled away just as Hinata snatched her senbon out of the air, flicking them down in his direction. The Inuzuka twisted his body around them and flipped back up into the air.

Akamaru, still with his Kiba henge-thing on, charged from behind.

Hinata whirled on him, arms raised. Just as she was about to strike him in the chest, her eyes narrowed. She jumped into the air – obviously aided by chakra, seeing as she was practically _flying_ – and Kiba's kunai slashed through empty air.

The Hyuga righted herself and threw more senbon towards her teammate as she descended. He dodged them easily.

"Sloppy," Kiba barked up.

"Not really," Hinata called, landing on the ground and _backing up_.

Kiba's eyes went wide – "Shit!" – and he threw himself forwards, just at the explosion tags, hidden by a simple henge, went off.

Beside Sakura, Naruto stared down at the smoke and fire, evil glinting in his eyes.

"I like this girl," he cackled.

Sakura didn't know if she should be happy for Hinata or scared for her.

The fight continued, both parties aiming for fatal blows, only for each to be dodged.

They seemed to dance out of each other's way, almost evenly matched. _Almost_.

Even though it was two-to-one, Hinata still seemed to have the upper hand. She could take a hit from her opponents, but they couldn't even allow for a blow to graze them.

Both Akamaru and Kiba rushed Hinata, one from the front, one from the back. Her Byakugan practically sparkled. She flipped up into the air, twisting herself to face her adversary. She gave a shout, aiming a hit at Akamaru.

The dog yelped, jumping away.

Hinata's hand hit the ground and the chakra that was automatically pushed out sent cracks through the floor.

Sakura cocked an eyebrow. She'd have to try something like that, maybe it'd increase her strength further…

Hinata practically growled, sweeping her feet under Akamaru's. He tried to jump, but she hooked her foot on his ankle. She pushed off the ground while yanking him down.

Turning her momentum into force, she continued in an arc, slamming her palm into the dog's shoulder, hard. Her other arm came up, hitting his leg.

She curled a foot under his side, flipping him over, and drove her knee hard into his back, sending him skidding into the wall.

He poofed back into dog form, whimpering.

Sakura winced.

Kiba looked furious. "Why'd you do that!" he screamed, charging.

Hinata whirled to face him, ramming her leg up straight and connecting her foot with his stomach. She twirled, pushing him off to the side with her.

"To win," she whispered, her words carrying over the silent arena. She yanked out a senbon, burying the needle deep in his arm.

He howled, ripping it out and chucking it back at her. She dodged it easily and stepped back, watching as Kiba's movements turned sluggish. Her eyes softened a bit.

"He's not hurt," she reassured, "I just sealed off his arm and leg."

Kiba hissed through his teeth, his eyes shifting back and forth in attempt to focus on something, anything.

Sakura knew it wouldn't work, though.

Hinata had been studying poisons since she was eight, back when Sakura got her a book on them. The Hyuga was far from a master, but she had enough concoctions to ether knock a person out cold or give them hives for a week.

She hadn't fully transitions into deadly materials yet, and was quite reluctant to do so, but she was getting close.

And, paired with her fighting style and her Juken, everyone knew she'd turn out to be the deadliest of combinations within a few years.

Kiba gulped, as if to try and wet his mouth. It was starting to take effect, Sakura noted.

Hinata stepped forwards, the bulging veins around her eyes receding. "I'm sorry I had to do this. You'll learn why I did, though, once you're faced with decisions."

"What d-d-decisions did you even have to make?" Kiba slurred.

The Hyuga's eyes practically sang with sorrow, but were quickly covered up with a hard, regal look, the same one she had on whenever she had to deal with Neji, or her clan.

Hinata had many expressions of sorrow and kindness, but she only had one look when it came to her position in the world, and this was it.

"Too many to count," she said, her voice a sob with no tears, no rolls, and no sound.

It barely carried through the room, yet it still hit Sakura's ears, as well as her heart.

Hinata reached out a hand, tapping her teammate lightly in the shoulder.

Kiba teetered backwards, slamming into the ground.

.

.

.

"Winner: Hyuga Hinata!"

* * *

 **Why, yes, I did totally screw with the plot line… Oh, wait, that's what this entire stories about… Oops ... not! OH! OH! It's kind of out of the left field but I've been a jerk-ass and haven't thanked some people yet and I totally have to!**

 **They're from non-English based countries (as far as I know) and sometimes even review in their own language, but that makes their reviews _so_ much more special to me because this fic's is in fucking _English_ and idk if English is their second language or not but, if it _is,_ then it's _totally_ awesome that they're reading _my_ fic when they could be reading fanfic's in their own language! **

**So, here's a BIG, OVERDUE _THANKS_ TO YOU AWESOME PEOPLE:**

 **(Mexico - found it through profile) - this person reviews constantly and I love them for it; almost every chapter I get a notification for a review and send it to Heime in order for her to translate it. I get all antsy waiting for the translation- I love their reviews!**

 **KassfromVenus (I don't know what country, sorry) - they might review in English, but their profile is all in another language so, even if their English is amazing, I still have thank them for dealing with my fic**

 **Lisa [guest] (Germany - said in comment) - they gave such a nice review that I just need to add them because I don't know why but I got an image of a cute little panda when I read their review**

 **I know it's not a big number of people but it's still amazing to me.** **Again, a big thanks to you three. Can we get a virtual round of applause? If so, give it to these awesome people!**

 **~Koi**


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